The supermodels of the 1990s were a major phenomenon. We didn’t even need to mention their last names! Cindy, Naomi, Claudia, Linda—these names became true symbols of beauty, grace, and luxury. But does that mean supermodeling is an exclusively female profession? Not so! We introduce you to the handsome man who earned the title of the first male supermodel.
Of course, men had been appearing on the pages of fashion magazines long before the 1990s, but they mostly remained anonymous extras. But British model John Pearson, whom Vogue calls the first male supermodel, completely changed the rules of the game and became a pioneer of male celebrity modeling.
Over his 30-plus-year career, he has appeared in over 100 advertising campaigns. He is also the only male model to appear in American GQ editorials for three decades.
Thanks to his aristocratic looks, he was the most sought-after male model in the 1990s, the face of some of the world’s biggest brands, including Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Donna Karan, Valentino, Burberry, Levi’s, and Gap. Pierson posed for all the major fashion photographers, from Mario Testino and Helmut Newton to Peter Lindbergh and Patrick Demarchelier.
Not to mention his appearance in George Michael’s iconic music video for “Freedom,” directed by a young David Fincher. The video, which also starred Linda Evangelista, Cindy Crawford, Christy Turlington, Naomi Campbell, and Tatjana Patitz, went a long way toward cementing the status of supermodels in pop culture. And the fact that Pearson also appeared in the video only confirms that he, too, was part of that select group.
Born and raised in Sheffield, northern England, Pearson began his career at 18, working as a manager in a denim store.
“One day, a guy walked into the store and said, ‘I’d like to take a picture of you. I’m a photographer.’ I was terrified. But he took the photos, and I thought, ‘Actually, they look pretty good,'” Pearson recalled of how he got into the fashion world.
His first professional shoot was the cover of Self magazine with Uma Thurman in 1986, and his career took off from there.
Despite his stunning success, at some point the model felt tired of this life.
“I’m tired of people touching my face. There were times when I wanted to stop, when I turned down hundreds of thousands of dollars. At that point in your career, you become a showman. You’re the center of attention, but sometimes you don’t want to be the center of attention—even if that’s what you signed up for . “
At some point, Pearson focused on his personal life. He has been married to Alison Edmond, a renowned stylist, for almost 30 years; they have three children.
However, Pearson is still in demand and periodically appears in magazines and on the catwalk.
“Luckily, I reached a certain age where there weren’t many of us still working,” Pearson says of colleagues who started in the ’80s and ’90s.
But, while noting the low level of competition, John is, of course, being modest – he is still in excellent shape, so he can put even the young ones to shame.
“I still have my hair, my teeth, I’m pretty well-groomed and I don’t have a belly,” he jokes.
