Iman

The Student Who Didn't Want to Be a Muse

Peter Beard found her on a street in Nairobi in 1975. She was not a refugee or a nomadic herder, as the New York press later tried to sell in order to feed cheap exoticism. She was a political science student at university who spoke five languages and agreed to pose for Beard only so she could pay her tuition fees.

She arrived in the United States that same year, having never worn high heels or makeup. But her endless neck and a bone structure that looked designed by a Renaissance architect put her in front of Richard Avedon's lens within days. Yves Saint Laurent once said she was his dream woman, and he dedicated entire collections to her while fashion magazines fought over her profile.

The industry wasn't ready for her.

In 1979, she decided the runway wasn't enough and began looking for a place in film. Her first appearance was in The Human Factor (1979), directed by Otto Preminger. It was a small role, but it showed that her physical presence came across on screen in a way few models of the era could manage.

Her Move into Film and the Business of Color

Her most memorable film moment came in 1985 with Out of Africa. She played Mariammo and shared the screen with Meryl Streep and Robert Redford. It was a complex shoot, where Iman proved she could carry the weight of a big-budget production without breaking a sweat. In 1987, she appeared in the thriller No Way Out alongside Kevin Costner, and in 1991 she became an alien for Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.

And it worked.

But the real turning point came off the sets. For years, she had to bring her own foundation shades to photo shoots because professional makeup artists didn't carry shades for darker skin. So in 1994, she founded Iman Cosmetics. She didn't want an unaffordable luxury product; she wanted to create a line for all skin tones that would be sold in drugstores and department stores.

In its first year of operation, the company brought in 12 million dollars in the U.S. market alone. It was a wake-up call for the major cosmetics corporations that had ignored this market segment for decades. Iman went from being just a face to becoming an executive who controlled her own image and her fortune.

Production and Quiet Legacy

She married David Bowie in 1992 in a private ceremony in Switzerland, followed by a celebration in Florence. They kept their personal life away from the tabloid spotlight for more than two decades (nearly impossible in the world of superstars). After the musician's death in 2016, she focused on her philanthropic work and on protecting her family's legacy.

She never returned to the runway in an active way, but her influence moved into the production office. In 2022, she served as executive producer of the documentary series Supreme Models. The show examines the impact of Black models on popular culture and the fashion industry from a historical and economic perspective.

She remains linked to the industry as a model of personal brand management. In 2023, her company had global distribution deals and a constant presence in the skincare sector. Her licensing deal with Jay Manuel Beauty, signed years ago, is still a case study in business schools for its profitability and technical structure.