Veruschka von Lehndorff

Veruschka, born Vera Gottliebe Anna Gräfin von Lehndorff‑Steinort on 14 May 1939 in Königsberg, East Prussia, emerged from a turbulent aristocratic background to become the first German supermodel and a cultural icon of the 1960s and 1970s. Her early life was marked by tragedy: her father, Count Henrich von Lehndorff‑Steinort, was executed for participation in the July 20 plot against Hitler when she was only five, and the family endured displacement and internment until the war’s end. After attending thirteen schools and studying art in Hamburg, she moved to Florence where photographer Ugo Mulas discovered her at age 20, launching a meteoric modeling career that swiftly took her to Paris, New York, and Munich. She graced the covers of Life (August 1967) and every major Vogue edition, collaborated with legendary photographers such as Richard Avedon, Peter Beard and Franco Rubartelli, and earned up to $10 000 a day at the height of her fame. Her work extended beyond runway glamour; she pioneered body‑painting photography, appeared in Michelangelo Antonioni’s cult classic Blow‑Up (1966), and voiced tracks on the 2010 experimental album Mimikry by ANBB. After a public fallout with Vogue editor Grace Mirabella in 1975, Veruschka withdrew from mainstream fashion, turning to avant‑garde art collaborations with sculptor Holger Trülzsch and occasional runway appearances for designers such as Helmut Lang, Paco Rabanne, and Giles Deacon well into her seventies. She also engaged in political activism, joining the 1971 Stern cover protest declaring women’s right to abortion in West Germany. Though she never married and has no children, her legacy endures through her influence on later supermodels and designers, as well as a lasting filmography that includes Salomé (1972), Casino Royale (2006) and numerous documentary projects. Today, Veruschka remains a symbol of artistic freedom, embodying the synthesis of aristocratic poise and rebellious creativity that reshaped modern fashion and visual culture.