The Top Ten Models of the Decade (Thus Far)

[eizhowa]

I don't like this list because it implies that 2005-2015 was an era of fashion. Fashion there is reason that fashion is split into decades because things change dramatically throughout the decade and the start of a new one gives fashion the change to start anew. Kate Moss and Gisele are overall top models but the last 5 years? They don't even really model anymore.

If fashion is a reflection of the times, then it makes little sense to split it up into decades. Wars and other significant changes occur regardless of whether it is the start of a new decade or not. The financial crisis had the nerve to occur in the middle of a decade (how rude!). But traditionally we have definitely seperated fashion into decades I don't think a designer thinks it needs to start anew every new decade, just for the sake of it. Surely a designer tries to change every season

The models who worked a lot in the period 2005-2015 would fall into the first or second category of models that I suggested.

 

[eizhowa]

Gemma was definitely one of the great models of the 00s but she has not had any impact in this decade as far as I can tell.

 

[jj36]

i think i have to take joan smalls out and put freja in. i think freja is way more accoplished than joan.

Freja no longer has a maybelline contract. They dropped her pretty quickly... which is not a surprise.

I would put Isabeli over Joan. She has move Vogue Covers and has the L'Oreal contract. Multiple fragrance contracts (something Joan doesn't have). I wouldn't be surprised if she was offered a VS contract years ago. She makes more money off the various commercial campaigns than what she could earn from an VS contract.

 

[valliaddict]

I would define "models of the decade" as models that made it big in 2010 & onward. For me girls like Isabeli, Freja & Natasha wouldnt count because they defined their decade & hit it big pre-2010. For me the top 10 would be (in no particular order

-Cara Delevingne (the girl who catapulted the socialite supermodel trend)
-Karlie Kloss (Vogue's cover darling)
-Joan Smalls (the most successful model of color in the past 10 years)
-Candice Swanepoel (the current VS star)
-Gigi Hadid (a well known, socialite model who has been everywhere, lately. She will be remembered, whether good or bad)
-Anna Ewers (the most buzzed about newie surely to reach icon status)
-Lexi Boling (this decade's resident cool girl)
-Kendall Jenner (with over 40 million followers, her sheer visibilty is enough to call her a defining model of the decade, despite how mich I hate to admit it)
-Liu Wen (China's most successful export as far as money & popularity are concerned)
-Edie Campbell (the most successful HF socialite model)

If I had it my way girls like Karmen, Saskia & Aymeline would be more succesful than these socialite girls, but times are very different now.

 

[katcty]

carolyn was big pre-2005. even she has the estee lauder contract for years but she doesn't get many campaigns and covers for the past 10 years. erin has maybelline for whatever years but she gets almost next to nothing when it comes to campaign and cover.

karolina was big pre-2005 but after that she didnt get much. she would get a random job everynow and then. karen's resume is not bad but it is still inferior to those listed. samething can be said to isabel's resume, great but not good enough to be on the list. if the list extended to 15 im sure karen and isabel and mcb would be in there.

my ranking is not based wholely on longterm cosmetic contract but cosmetic contract is the major factor. then u have blue chip campaigns and covers.

I don't mean to start a fight but Carolyn Murphy still gets covers for Vogue, Elle, Liu, and Love. She also has done campaigns for Oscar, Louis Vuitton, Tiffany, and Moschino in the past 5 years. Your list categorizes from 2005-2015, she had repeat covers of the SI Swimsuit issue. Karolina also still gets covers and blue chip campaigns. She is along with Gisele are the only models who still appear on talk shows with nothing to promote. She's still relevant.

If fashion is a reflection of the times, then it makes little sense to split it up into decades. Wars and other significant changes occur regardless of whether it is the start of a new decade or not. The financial crisis had the nerve to occur in the middle of a decade (how rude!). But traditionally we have definitely seperated fashion into decades I don't think a designer thinks it needs to start anew every new decade, just for the sake of it. Surely a designer tries to change every season

The models who worked a lot in the period 2005-2015 would fall into the first or second category of models that I suggested.

Fashion changes throughout the decade (ie supers, waif) but fashion is always grouped into the decade because thats how we look at culture. You wouldn't put Paulina and Kate in the same generation like you wouldn't put Gemma and Joan in the same generation.

 

[anlabe32]

then she stopped working and got nothing after that. and i dont remember she got a cosmetic contract either.

Lol who cares. The impact she had on fashion is way bigger than Joan and Isabeli put together.

 

[eizhowa]

Katcty: We do, but it is an artificial form of categorization. That was all I meant. 2005-2015 could be an era of fashion, if the clothes were very distinctly similar in that period, and different from what came before and after. Or in this context, the models were very similar. But for simplicity, we tend to think of fashion eras as 70s, 80s, 90s etc. Diors bar suit/the new look was debuted in 1947, but we think of it as typical 50s fashion. The hippie movement (which was really more a street style, not high fashion) started for real in the mid-60s, but most would think of it as a 70s fashion moment. But it doesn't really matter, as long as everyone understands which era you are referring to

 

[congacon]

Lol who cares. The impact she had on fashion is way bigger than Joan and Isabeli put together.

and that's only your opinion

 

[eizhowa]

I sort of agree with Analabe32... I didn't know much about fashion back then, but I remember Gemmas presence very well. Joan and Isabeli haven't made as big an impact in my very subjective opinion. But maybe Isabeli and Joan have had more success in other parts of the world than they have in my small corner of it.

 

[anlabe32]

and that's only your opinion

No need to point that out your list is your opinion as well.

I don't think Joan or Isabeli could take an 8 year break and come back with such force as Gemma. I don't think they will be terribly missed like Gemma was either.

Hell, I don't even like Gemma.

 

[alonsoJonathan]

No need to point that out your list is your opinion as well.

I don't think Joan or Isabeli could take an 8 year break and come back with such force as Gemma. I don't think they will be terribly missed like Gemma was either.

Hell, I don't even like Gemma.

 

[Mrs.Smith]

I'm not sure if I have much of an opinion, but I really love reading what you all are saying.

I quite like eizhowa's four categories. I just feel big money contracts should not Play the most important role. For example, I think the first category (old School super models) should not be considered here, they get the really big contracts these days since ordinary people know them. It's like including Keira Knightley etc. Also I'm not a fan (obviously) of the last category (nepotism), I feel those girls would have become actresses/singers/shoe designers if someone had told them this was the next big sh*t for celebrity children. But I'd include Cara, because IMO she began like an ordinary model (supported by her family of course), but then she became this social media star, which started the whole social media model Thing. Also Edie IMO is a model in her own right. Maybe I'll say the same about certain others some day, too...

I also feel that Gemma should be included (for the 00s), one more reason not to overestimate how much money a model made throughout that decade. I think there were extremely few Girls who had an Impact like her. I'm surprised that Vlada wasn't mentioned, because back then I felt that she was one of the most discussed models in this Forum, too. Freja also Needs to be included for the 00s, no matter if she had a cosmetic contract back then, or not.

If we refer to 2010- today the first one that comes to my mind is probably Anna Ewers. Cara. Also I never understood why Karlie Kloss was one of vogue's 30 models of the 00s, she should be included here.

 

[SpeakThatJDunn]

well there are lots of girls who have more covers and campaign than joan smalls eg sasha p or freja however joan small has the long term estee lauder contract and that is hard to beat. freja has maybelline but then it's...maybelline.

Freja doesn't have a contract with Maybelline anymore.

 

[Lola701]

I don't know if it's fair to make a "decade list". Modelling has changed a lot in 10 years. But, this is my list:

Daria W: She is THE TOP MODEL of those last 10 years. While she reached stardom with Prada in 2003, she became an icon during those last 10 years. She started the decade with being Tom Ford's Gucci last girl and 2 years of Chanel domination and ended the decade with that very successful Celine gig! + VOGUE big 4

Freja B: The ultimate cool girl. I feel like without her, we couldn't have Julia Nobis and all those "cool girls" around. We noticed her in 2007 when she took Daria's place as a Chanel girl but 2010 was a very decisive year for her.

Sasha P: Of course, she is the ultimate Prada woman but for me she is really one of a kind. She embodies the fantasy side of fashion.

Natasha P: She is the russian bombshell and a real force in modelling. Plus, she had a very successful catalogue of Vogue covers (Vogue R, Paris, Japan, Us)

Liya K: She is the most important black model of the decade. Her longevity is admirable. Even if she was discovered in 2000, she started being a force in the mid 00's. She is the epitome of the cool & elegant woman, thanks to her very high fashion, blue chip career.

Joan S: Because she is the most important black model since Liya Kebede. I wanted to put Jourdan or Chanel I but IMO, Joan's accomplishments are stronger in such a short term.

Anja R: Because she started to rule the game when she cut her hair in 2007. She has been iconic since then and her magazine 25 proved us that she can be much more than a pretty face.

Karlie K: It's obvious, she is a major player in the modelling game...Even more since she is linked to the insta-It girls.

Natalia V: It's obvious, no need to explain why.

Raquel Z: She is my personal favorite. Maybe the most versatile model. Even if she hasn't scored that Vogue Paris cover yet, she is still a force that count.

+
Cara D: Only because she started that trend of Insta-It/ New Socialite girls even if in terms of career, i feel like Edie Campbell and Gigi Hadid will be ore successful than her.


I decided to not include some big names like MCB, Karen E, Gisele or even Carmen K, Karolina K, Angella L. because even if they had accomplished a lot in those last 10 years, It's their body of work before 2005 that allowed them to be still that successful today.

 

[saucer-like]

Edie is already more successful than the lot of them, even with their cosmetic contracts imo and probably will continue to be.