Jean Shrimpton

Jean Shrimpton was an eminent supermodel of the Sixties and Vogue cover girl. Born in Buckinghamshire in 1942, she was raised on a farm and educated at a convent school in Slough before attending the Lucie Clayton Charm Academy, a modelling school in London. She was one of the first models to be associated with the term "supermodel", with TIME magazine labelling her as one in 1971. She began modelling aged 17 and was notable for breaking the mould of voluptuous, aristocratic models that had previously been in favour. Nicknamed "The Shrimp", she was famed for her thick fringe, arched brows and doe-eyes. A chance meeting at a photography studio in 1960 led to her much-publicised relationship with the photographer David Bailey. Shrimpton was shooting a cereal advert with Brain Duffy when Bailey, who was working in the same studios, spotted her. Although Bailey was married at the time, the pair began a relationship which contributed to both becoming icons of the Sixties. At the time of their meeting, Bailey was a rising star on the fashion photography scene thanks to his unconventional and ground-breaking techniques. Having secured a contract with British Vogue, he insisted upon using Shrimpton in a shoot for the publication which was taking place in New York, the result of which was an editorial shoot entitled Young Idea Goes West. Published in the April 1962 issue, the photographs were highly acclaimed and propelled both Bailey and Shrimpton into the public eye. The story...