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Harpers Bazaar Arabia

Still Super: Helena Christensen Is The Harper's Bazaar Arabia July/August 2025 Cover Star

Helping define one of the most romanticised, referenced and high-octane eras of all time, Helena Christensen has already made history. Her story? Still very much being written… Few things feel quite as surreal as corresponding on email with someone whose face has been etched into your cultural memory for as long as you can remember – not just a model on screens and magazine covers, but an icon. A woman whose beauty didn't just define a decade, but helped shape the very notion of what it meant to be captivating. With her luminous eyes, chiseled cheekbones and unmistakable smoulder, Helena Christensen became a global obsession in the '90s – a muse to photographers like Herb Ritts and Peter Lindbergh, a Victoria's Secret Angel before the term became common currency, and the unforgettable star of Chris Isaak's Wicked Game video, where her image was forever scorched into pop culture history. Once the date is set, we meet on a WhatsApp video call; again, utterly surreal. Helena appears on screen, shower-fresh with wet hair and explains, laughing, 'I've just had my hair coloured,' before shaking her head to show me the auburn- brown colour. In her 50s, she's as compelling as ever – more so even. And yes, she's beautiful, but there's so much more to Helena; her life and her career that's less often spotlighted. She was a founding partner and creative director of the ultra- cool Nylon magazine in the late '90s, has always been a committed philanthropist, and is the driving force behind a range of creative projects spanning photography, interior design collaborations, and her role as creative director for the niche fragrance house strangelove NYC. She's also quietly redefined what a traditional career path can look like – particularly for women, over the course of their lives. If anyone knows how to navigate the shifting seasons of fashion and life with grace and authenticity, it's Helena Christensen. Helena's entry into modelling was as serendipitous as it was cinematic. Born in Copenhagen to a Danish father (who sadly passed away in 2023) and Peruvian mother, she won Miss Denmark at just 18, which propelled her onto the international stage and led to a spot in the 1988 Miss Universe pageant, and her being recognised as a model to watch. But modelling wasn't her actual goal: 'My initial reason for taking the chance on modelling was because I figured, if I'm lucky, I'll get to travel and work with photographers, which is what I really wanted to do. Instead of learning about photography by reading about it, I can actually live it. Not in my wildest dreams could I have imagined that I would, as a 20-year-old, start working with photographers like Peter Lindbergh, Richard Avedon and Irving Penn. I was in the best photography school – it was a first-hand, intimate personal education. For many years I saw my modelling career as a way to get into photography, then with time, I that being a model is not just about posing and wearing clothes and I started actually enjoying the creative aspect of it.' After moving to Paris in 1991 to pursue modelling full time, her striking features and unmistakable presence had caught the eye of industry titans. By the early '90s, Helena was a fixture on the best covers, a regular on the world's most prestigious runways, and a defining member of the original 'Supers' – a generation of models as instantly recognisable as any A-list actress. Her singular beauty – aquamarine eyes, sculpted features, and an ability to shift effortlessly from sultry to soft – made her unforgettable, but it was the magnetic energy she brought to every image that truly set her apart. Alongside Naomi, Linda, Christy and Cindy, Helena helped usher in a new era in fashion – one where models weren't simply mannequins, but cultural icons. She walked for Chanel, Versace, and Valentino, and fronted campaigns for Revlon and Victoria's Secret. But unlike many of her peers, Helena often side-stepped the limelight, cultivating a quieter, more enigmatic presence that only deepened her allure. She looks back on that time fondly. 'Entering the whole supermodel era was exciting. I started working with incredibly iconic designers and having that first-hand experience being fitted by talented seamstresses who would build and create these dream pieces directly on your body.' But the work was gruelling too; 'I have to stand for four hours, not move and with needles literally poking into me. I was so young but knew I was lucky to work with so many incredible designers. It really is such an incredible career because there is this whole universe you can explore; the cultural side, the languages you speak or will learn to speak, all the different countries you visit, the history you learn about.' It was her presence in that Wicked Game video – barefoot in black lace, slow-dancing on a volcanic beach in 1990 – that catapulted her to cultural icon status far beyond fashion. That smouldering performance became one of the most enduring images of the decade, a visual shorthand for sensuality. But even at the peak of her fame, Helena kept an element of mystery. How did she navigate those pressures? 'I just had a really good time in my 20s… and in my 30s and 40s,' she laughs. 'But if something doesn't feel right immediately, your body knows. I think my whole career is based on that. My whole life, too. I wasn't really someone who planned far ahead or made these big decisions. I kind of just floated along but was really connected to how I felt deep down in my stomach.' That connection to her own instincts is one of the many qualities that helped her navigate the industry and her incredible career. Finding her own ways to cope with stress and pressure over the years, she says: 'I've realised that there are so many ways you can focus and concentrate, and it doesn't have to be actual meditation. I love organising and tidying and when I do that I completely focus on that and I'm in a different headspace. But wild swimming and being in any body of water is the biggest healer in my life.' One of the things that's given her creative joy and respite over the years is property in upstate New York. 'It's a little old farm in the mountains that I got and renovated when Mingus her son was like six years old. He was growing up in a crazy intense city and I really wanted him to have nature too. We spent so much of his childhood there and I still go all the time.' Her private life has always been just that – private. But when she speaks about love and family, there's a quiet openness that hints at the depth beneath the surface. She's had high-profile relationships in the past, including with actor Norman Reedus, with whom she shares her son, Mingus, 25, who happens to be with her right now. She introduces us, and compliments his new haircut, before he leaves. 'I always made sure we spent so much time in nature when he was growing up. He would literally beg me to go outside, saying 'Can we go to the forest? Can we go find snakes and lizards?' I'm the same way. I think your passions and joys are often passed on naturally to your child. But it's also important that they become their own person and detach from you — it's all part of the process. But it's so freaking cool to have a person in your life that when they're a child you really feel like their mum, but then when they get older they become this cool person that you hang out with. Once in a while you forget that you created them. But then when it hits you that you actually did, it feels so surreal and amazing.' Having a parent who is that famous, that recognisable and that written about must have been a curious experience for a child. 'Whatever you do is your job. If you're a fireman, then the child grows up with that. If you're a doctor, the child grows up with that. There's lots of interesting conversations coming out of any job that you do. We definitely had a good laugh about it and he's seen both of us work really hard. He's also seen what we have done with it and how we have expanded that into other, completely different avenues.' Helena tells me about how tight-knit her, Mingus and her mother are; 'If we're in the same city we like to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner together. It's almost like we can't be apart when we are nearby. I think when you come from both Denmark and Peru, there are so many traditions and rituals – and a big family focus. But the Danes can be more closed up and mellow about things, while the Peruvian side is very passionate, very vocal and about airing your opinions. I'm very grateful for that, because I've grown up with all of our emotions right on the table and so has Mingus.' She's been lucky to travel extensively during her career and through her dual heritage and it has remained a true passion. 'I'm like a sponge with everything around me when I travel. I soak it all in, the vibe, the mood, the light – it all affects me, I can feel it physically and emotionally. I'll go to a place and it feels like everything is almost shimmering, and I feel a tingle in my body.' She's recently come back from a trip to Peru with her mother, which she documented on Instagram as being a very emotional experience. I ask if that's due to finding a sense of belonging when you're from two different cultural backgrounds? 'I grew up in Denmark and we visited Peru during the holidays, but didn't stay for very long. So when I'm in Peru, I have this feeling of wait a minute, this is the other half of me' and I really feel its spirit. There's a lot I can relate to; the emotions, passion and bursts of colour. The love of food, the family bonds, the closeness — all of that is my Peruvian side for sure.' That heritage undeniably comes across in her approach to how she lives, too. Whether she's in her apartment in New York, the Catskills farm or her beach house in Denmark, Helena's homes – despite being exceptionally beautiful – are not showpieces – they're sanctuaries. 'When I'm home it really is a nest to me and I get very attached to my neighbourhood. I'm the kind of person who chats to the elderly in the area, to the butcher, to the cheese store guy. really love the little neighbourhood routines and greetings in New York.' Her New York apartment is well documented, and filled with vintage furniture, stacks of photography books, and mementoes from her travels. She cooks often – usually something simple and seasonal – and surrounds herself with objects that have meaning. She's just been announced as a Creative Director at interiors brand Bo Concept Design which she says is a dream come true. 'Interiors has been a passion of mine since I was also in my teens. I've always been collecting and as soon as I was able to save up any money, it would always go towards building, renovating, collecting in one form or another. It's my life passion. Working closely with this really talented team of knowledgeable people who I could learn from and vice versa is a symbiotic relationship that has been extremely gratifying.' These days, Helena Christensen moves to a rhythm entirely her own – one that sits far from the frenzied pace of fashion weeks and campaign calendars. She's also deeply committed to humanitarian work, serving as a Goodwill Ambassador for UNHCR since 2019, and using her platform and photography skills to raise awareness and empathy around refugee rights and global displacement. 'I feel so lucky to actually work as a photographer on missions, going to refugee camps and documenting the lives of women and children by talking to them and getting to share their stories. I'm so extremely grateful for this work, I can't even tell you – I think about it several times a day.' Though she's very much rooted in the present, there is something she's very excited about that's coming up; 'Every year I go on this road trip with my sister and niece to a little island between Denmark and Russia. You drive through Sweden, then you take a ferry and then you end up on this island, which is basically cliffs and little tiny villages with houses that are four or five hundred years old, with hay on the roof. Then I'll spend the rest of the summer in Denmark with my family and friends. We stay in a little cottage on the beach, so I'm just in my swimsuit all day, or in the water with my dog. I fly kites with my mom and take trips to this beautiful area with wild sheep, and we cook a lot and pick flowers. All that kind of stuff is, to me, the essence of life. I don't really think that far ahead and really try to live minute by minute. I am trying to learn to appreciate every second of my life because it goes by so fast.' After a decades-long career filled with adventure, reinvention and unforgettable moments, this chapter may be Helena's most radical act yet – one defined not by bright lights or frenzy – but by creative freedom, purpose, and a quiet kind of joy. Group Editor in Chief: Olivia Phillips. Art Director: Paul Solomons. Photography: Greg Lotus. Styling: Ayumi Perry. Make-Up: Edward Cruz at Tomlinson Management Group. Hair: Mark Williamson at Artist Management. Executive Producer Ana Carolina Gonzalez Bortot. Junior Producer: Carolina Bishop-Iglesias. Production Coordinator: Veronica Producer: Heather Alexander. Set Designer: Milena Gorum at Art Department Agency. Fashion Assistants: Madilynn Stith and Juanito Kresl. Photography Assistants: Kyle de Vre and Victoria Vdovina. Retoucher: Lara Chrome. Production Company: ESYN Studios