Tatjana Patitz

She was 56. Patitz died Wednesday from breast cancer, her agent Corinne Nicolas told CNN. She's survived by her son, Jonah. The German-born model appeared on ...

[Mexican magazine Milenio](https://www.milenio.com/estilo/moda-y-belleza/tatjana-patitz-modelo-convirtio-defensora-mustang)in 2021 that she was involved in California legislation to protect wild horses and has been involved with the American Wild Horse Campaign, which works to protect public lands. Patitz told Milenio she preferred to live a lower-key life than her fellow supermodels and enjoyed "being surrounded by nature, away from concrete and noise" with her son and their animals. She was just one face among a sea of supermodels for Vogue's 100th anniversary cover in 1992, all of them dressed identically in white jeans and white button-down shirts tied at the midriff. She also appeared with her son Jonah in a 2012 shoot at their California home. [iconic 1990 British Vogue](https://www.vogue.com/article/supermodel-tatjana-patitz-best-in-vogue)cover, also shot by Lindbergh -- Patitz, one of the "original" supermodels of that era, appeared alongside Christy Turlington, Cindy Crawford, [Naomi Campbell](https://www.cnn.com/style/article/naomi-campbell-british-vogue-intl-scli/index.html)and [Linda Evangelista](https://www.cnn.com/style/article/linda-evangelista-british-vogue-cover/index.html). Her appearance, she said, wasn't just beautiful; it was memorable and evocative. Her piercing gaze gave her a slightly more otherworldly look, according to observations from those in the industry. '90" which also became a [cultural artifact](https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/30/fashion/george-michael-freedom-video.html). [1990 Harper's Bazaar](https://web.archive.org/web/20160822180320/https://postimg.org/image/edb7hwd8v/)story: "Indeed, Patitz's features almost confuse. The German-born model appeared on dozens of covers for Vogue and countless other fashion magazines beginning in the 1980s. It was around this time that she became the muse of photographer Peter Lindbergh, for whom she'd model until the 2010s. (Cindy Crawford was also a finalist that year, per Elite.)

Model Tatjana Patitz has died, aged 56, her modelling agency has announced. No cause of death has been revealed. The German-born model was living in ...

Anna Wintour, global editorial director of Vogue, said: "Tatjana was always the European symbol of chic, like Romy Schneider-meets-Monica Vitti... Patitz, who rose to fame in the 1990s, became one of the decade's most prominent supermodels. No cause of death has been revealed.

The German-born Patitz was among an elite group of famed fashion supermodels who graced magazine covers. She famously appeared in George Michael's "Freedom!

"There was a real era, and the reason that happened was because glamour was brought into it," she was quoted as saying in Prestige Hong Kong magazine. The magazine quoted its global editorial director, Anna Wintour, as saying Patitz was "always the European symbol of chic, like Romy Schneider-meets-Monica Vitti. Nicolas said the cause was illness, but did not have further details.

Tatjana Patitz modeled alongside Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista and others in the 1980s. She died of metastatic breast cancer at age 56.

“Tatjana was always the European symbol of chic, like Romy Schneider-meets-Monica Vitti,” she said. [she told The Times in 1993](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-08-08-ca-21535-story.html). Sending my condolences to her family — especially the son she adored. We were in so many shoots together and backstage at shows,” Crawford captioned a picture of her and Patitz. Her love of animals and nature was infectious. To think of all the possible outcomes, I would drive myself insane.”

Patitz graced magazine covers in the 1980's and 90's and was part of an elite handful of “original” supermodels along with Christy Turlington, ...

“There was a real era, and the reason that happened was because glamour was brought into it," she was quoted as saying in Prestige Hong Kong magazine. The magazine quoted its global editorial director, Anna Wintour, as saying Patitz was “always the European symbol of chic, like Romy Schneider-meets-Monica Vitti. “Now the celebrities and actresses have taken over, and the models are in the backseat completely.”