Naomi Campbell’s Impact on Fashion, From the Designers Who Dressed Her

Jean Paul Gaultier once said, “clothes are nothing without someone inside who knows how to move.” For the audacious French designer, Naomi Campbell embodied that “someone”: an assertive, strut-serving fashion icon who catapulted those clothes into contemporary culture—a super-model worthy of the word’s prodigious prefix.

Over the last four decades of her pioneering career, Campbell has been inside many clothes. She’s sported haute couture and ready-to-wear runway ensembles for everyone from Anna Sui to Azzedine Alaïa, and built a wardrobe as versatile—and volatile—as she is. In it hangs the Hazmat suit and Burberry cape combo that saw her memed to oblivion during COVID, and the Dolce & Gabbana look she donned for her last day of community service (issued after throwing a phone at her housekeeper’s face.)

And now, her notorious and Internet-immortalized wardrobe is on public display, as part of a London show celebrating Campbell’s 40 years at the forefront of fashion. Produced in collaboration with Campbell herself, NAOMI: In Fashion marks the V&A’s first exhibition dedicated to a model—an honor that underscores her profound impact not only on fashion, but on culture at large.

The exhibition chronicles Campbell’s journey from a vivacious South London kid (starring in Bob Marley’s music video aged seven) to her trailblazing fashion ascent after being street-scouted at 15 (her first Vogue cover would come less than two years later, before becoming the first Black model to cover French Vogue, and TIME magazine).

Despite its name, the exhibition is more than just an homage to “Naomi in fashion.” It traverses everything from her profound bond with Nelson Mandela, who affectionately referred to her as his “honorary granddaughter,” to her ongoing anti-racist activism.

Above all, though, NAOMI is a playful tribute to the powerful presence and personality that cemented Capmbell’s iconic status in the court of public opinion—lionized for the very same unapologetic attitude for which she’s often criticized. Campbell is famously, fashionably, late (McQueen once cancelled her from a show, and told her to “fuck off” for her tardiness), and refreshingly frank (her response to being summoned to the witness stand in a blood diamond trial has become near-universally quotable lore: “This is a big inconvenience for me… I didn’t really want to be here. I was made to be here.”)

But while the most pivotal relationship Campbell has managed to cultivate might be with the general public, her enduring collaborations with the industry’s most influential innovators have most fortified her influence. Here, the V&A’s senior fashion curator, Sonnet Stanfill, runs through the legacy and life lessons of some of Campbell’s most formidable fashion looks and friendships.

Azzedine Alaïa

“Naomi Campbell and the late Tunis-born, Paris-based designer Azzedine Alaïa shared a close personal and professional relationship. To her, Alaïa was ‘Papa’, while he termed Campbell ‘ma fille’. They met during Campbell’s first summer working in Paris, after her traveler’s checks had been stolen. Alaïa opened up his residence and studio to the young model, where she would always be welcome.

Campbell’s physique, to him ‘a perfect body’, inspired much of the designer’s work. This catsuit is an example of classic Alaïa—chic, close-fitting, and showcasing a black-on-black leopard-pattern textile. When Campbell wore it, she exuded pure joy on the runway, executing a perfect kick-turn as part of the performance. The walk, fun and elegant, was typical of how Campbell approached Alaïa’s legendary shows. This look comes from Campbell’s own collection and so it is particularly special to her.”

Yves Saint Laurent

“When we interviewed Campbell about working with Saint Laurent, she mentioned the established models—many of them women of color—who were helpful and welcoming and showed her how to approach a runway walk for the designer. ‘I was lucky,’ she said. ‘When I asked for advice like “How do I take off a cape?” they would show me.’ Yves Saint Laurent epitomized French haute couture and was also known for regularly casting Black models. Campbell first walked for Saint Laurent in his autumn/winter 1987 presentation and wore this dress along with others. Made from bird-of-paradise feathers, its ethereal quality on the catwalk was breathtaking. What people may not remember is that Campbell wore this dress twice, first in 1987, in her first Saint Laurent catwalk show. Then she wore it once more for a 2002 show which coincided with Yves Saint Laurent’s retirement. Campbell recalled, ‘God bless Yves, because he was a designer... who really helped women of color and he changed the course of my career.’”

Steven Meisel

“When I look at Meisel’s photographs of Campbell, there is a synergy that has been, without doubt, a key factor in the rise and lasting influence of the original supermodels. He chronicled them like no other photographer. Campbell and Meisel worked together from the late 1980s. I think it’s fitting to convey their collaboration in Campbell’s own words: ‘Steven was the best teacher when you were starting out. He taught you how to move perfectly and how to use your expression to come from within, from the inside out.’”

Chanel

“Perhaps the most important early connection with the house of Chanel was Campbell modeling a Chanel couture look on the cover of British Vogue’s December 1987 issue. The shoot, which took place in the early hours on a beach in The Hamptons, was a cover try, meaning it wasn’t sure that it would be a cover. It would become her first Vogue cover and the first time a Black British model was cast for a British Vogue cover. That image of a seventeen year old Campbell—laughing with her head thrown back—is utterly youthful and joyous. It is a magical photograph and would have presented the viewer with a young, modern image of French haute couture.”

“The lavender Chanel suit is from Naomi Campbell’s own collection, and it is quintessential Lagerfeld for the house. Purple was her favorite color, and Lagerfeld would often give her the designs in this shade to model.”

Alexander McQueen

“One of the key things Campbell expressed to us about Lee McQueen was admiration for his innate talent and particular vision. She said: ‘When I did my first fitting for [McQueen at Givenchy], I understood immediately that this man was... a perfectionist. When I’m around someone like that, I want to learn from them.’ She also recalled how much the Givenchy workroom staff admired McQueen who, in turn, treated them with enormous respect. ‘I understood that they learned a whole new way of working when they worked with him.’ She also talked very descriptively about the experience of walking for McQueen. She said, ‘When McQueen spoke to you about the show, he explained... a story of how you had to be and what you had to think in your mind and how you had to let that psyche infiltrate into your walk.’”

Mugler

“This is a corset fashioned to look like the hood of a car, complete with grille and indicator lights! It is made from plastic and metal, and was created by Mugler in collaboration with the creative Jean-Jacques Urcun, who also worked with Mugler on other collections. Campbell modeled this look both on the runway and in a fashion editorial. One interesting perspective about Mugler that Campbell shared was that his approach to casting helped to create the supermodel. She credits Mugler with establishing a tiered payment system for the top models. According to Campbell, ‘It would be, “OK, you get a round-trip Concord ticket, with this amount of money, that’s the package deal” which he offered to a select few.’”

Versace

“When we interviewed Campbell about the Marilyn Monroe-print dress from Gianni Versace’s spring/summer 1991 collection, she said, ‘Normally after the show, Gianni did a dinner and we always remained in the last outfit we walked in. I wore this dress to dinner.’ It’s wonderful to think of the designer taking his models out on the town after the show, all of them resplendent in the final look they wore on the catwalk.”

NAOMI: In Fashion is on display at London’s V&A Museum until April 2025.