If you close your eyes and think about the 1950s, you probably see a very specific, polished image. It’s all corsets, rigid poses, and debutantes looking like they’re carved out of marble. Then the 1960s hit. It wasn't just a change in clothes; it was a total demolition of what a "model" was even supposed to be. Honestly, the shift was violent. Models in the 60's stopped being hangers for high-society gowns and started being the main event.
You had girls coming out of the working-class suburbs of London rather than finishing schools in Paris. It was messy. It was loud. For the first time, a model's personality—that weird, intangible "swinging" energy—mattered more than her ability to balance a book on her head.
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The London Earthquake and the Rise of the Youth Quake
Before 1960, modeling was a profession for "grown-ups." You looked like a woman. You had a certain height, a certain weight, and a very certain way of speaking. Then came Jean Shrimpton. People called her "The Shrimp," which sounds kind of insulting now, but she was the blueprint. She had this long, leggy, slightly disheveled look that made the old guard absolutely lose their minds.
There’s this famous story from 1965. Shrimpton went to the Melbourne Cup in Australia. She didn't wear a hat. She didn't wear gloves. Most importantly, her dress ended four inches above her knees. The scandal was huge. Newspapers went into a frenzy. But that was the moment everyone realized the power of models in the 60's—they weren't just showing off clothes; they were dictating social norms. They were the influencers before the internet existed.
Twiggy and the Androgynous Revolution
You can't talk about this era without Lesley Lawson, better known as Twiggy. She was sixteen. She was five-foot-six, which was actually considered short for a model back then. With her cropped hair and those painted-on "lashes," she looked more like a waif-like boy than a traditional pin-up.
It was a pivot point. Suddenly, the industry wasn't obsessed with "curves" in the traditional sense. They wanted the "mod" look. It was a visual representation of the teenage rebellion happening in the streets of Soho. Twiggy became a brand. You could buy Twiggy eyelashes, Twiggy dresses, and even Twiggy dolls. This was the birth of the supermodel as a commercial empire.
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Breaking the Color Barrier: Donyale Luna and Naomi Sims
While London was swinging, the United States was grappling with its own massive cultural shifts. For a long time, the fashion industry was almost entirely white. It’s a grim reality of the time. But in 1966, Donyale Luna became the first Black model to appear on the cover of British Vogue.
Luna was ethereal. She moved like a creature from another planet. Salvador Dalí obsessed over her. She wasn't just a model; she was performance art. However, it wasn't easy. Even after her success, some advertisers pulled their ads from magazines that featured her. It was a constant, uphill battle against a deeply systemic bias.
Then came Naomi Sims. Often credited as the first Black supermodel, Sims navigated an industry that told her she was "too dark." She eventually bypassed the gatekeepers by reaching out to photographers directly and landing the cover of Ladies' Home Journal in 1968. These women didn't just walk runways; they forced the fashion world to acknowledge a reality it had been ignoring for decades.
The Photographer-Model Dynamic
In the 50s, the photographer was the boss. You stood where they told you. In the 60s, it became a dance. Look at the work of David Bailey or Richard Avedon. They wanted movement. They wanted the models to jump, run, and laugh.
- David Bailey: He was the rockstar of photography. His relationship with Jean Shrimpton changed how fashion was shot. It was intimate.
- The "Blow-Up" Era: The 1966 film Blow-Up captured this perfectly. It showed the photographer as a gritty, high-energy protagonist and the models as his muses.
- Veruschka: Born Countess Vera von Lehndorff-Steinort, she was nearly 6'3". She would paint herself to blend into rocks or trees. She treated modeling as a transformative metamorphosis.
The gear changed too. Faster film and smaller cameras meant photographers could leave the studio. They took the models to the streets of New York, the deserts of Africa, and the rooftops of London. This grit gave models in the 60's a sense of "realness" that hadn't existed before.
The Business of Being a Face
Early in the decade, models were often represented by small, mother-hen style agencies. By the end of the 60s, it was a cutthroat business. Wilhelmina Cooper, a massive star in her own right, founded Wilhelmina Models in 1967. She knew exactly how the industry worked from the inside.
She wasn't the only one. Ford Models, run by Eileen Ford, became a powerhouse. They implemented "The Ford Way," which was basically a strict set of rules for their models—no partying, early bedtimes, and a very specific look. It was the professionalization of beauty. The pay skyrocketed. A top model in the mid-60s could make $1,000 a week, which was a fortune back then.
The Shift Toward "The Face"
By 1967, it wasn't just about the body anymore. It was about "The Face." Penelope Tree is a great example. She had these massive, wide-set eyes and a look that David Bailey described as "an Egyptian space alien."
Fashion wasn't trying to be "pretty" anymore. It was trying to be interesting.
Diversity and the Late 60s Transition
As the decade wound down, the "mod" look started to fade into the "hippie" aesthetic. The lines got blurrier.
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- Marsha Hunt: A Black American model and singer who moved to London. She became the face of the "Hair" poster and brought a raw, soulful energy to the scene.
- The American Look: Models like Cheryl Tiegs began their careers in the late 60s, hinting at the "California Girl" era that would dominate the 70s.
- Patti Boyd: The ultimate "muse." She was the face of the mid-60s and famously married both George Harrison and Eric Clapton. She embodied the link between fashion and the rock-and-roll elite.
Why We Still Care About These Models
You see their influence everywhere today. When you see a "no-makeup" makeup look or a model with a "unique" facial feature, that’s a direct descendant of the 1960s revolution. They broke the mold of the 1950s housewife and replaced it with someone who looked like she actually had a life outside of a kitchen.
The 60s taught the industry that a model could be a person, a brand, and an activist all at once. It wasn't perfect—there were still massive issues with body image and racial representation—but it was the first time the door was kicked open.
Practical Takeaways for Fashion History Enthusiasts
If you're looking to dive deeper into this era or incorporate that "swinging" style into your own life, here is how you actually do it without looking like you’re wearing a costume.
Study the Silhouettes
Don't just look at the clothes; look at how they stood. The 60s were about "The Slouch." It was a rejection of the rigid posture of the past. To capture that energy, focus on A-line shapes and shift dresses that allow for movement.
Focus on the Eyes
The "London Look" was 90% eyes. Heavy mascara on the bottom lashes (the "spider" look) and a cut-crease eyeshadow are the hallmarks. Brands like Mary Quant—who basically invented the mini skirt—were pioneers in the makeup that accompanied the models.
Understand the Cultural Context
Read Vogue archives from 1964-1967. You’ll see the exact moment the photography shifts from static to kinetic. Look for the names of the photographers—not just the models—because they were the ones who decided how these women were seen by the world.
Visit the Sources
If you’re ever in London, the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) often has exhibits dedicated to this era. Their permanent fashion collection is a goldmine for seeing the actual garments worn by Twiggy and Shrimpton. Seeing the scale of these clothes in person really puts into perspective how much the "ideal body type" shifted in just ten years.
Analyze the Shift in Power
Notice how models started taking control of their images toward the end of the decade. They stopped being passive subjects. This is a great lesson for anyone in a creative field today: the transition from being the "talent" to being the "owner" of your brand started right here in the mid-to-late 60s.