David bowie and iman daughter

Iman (model)

Somali model and actress

Iman

Iman in

Born

Zara Mohamed Abdulmajid


() 25 July (age&#;69)

Mogadishu, Trust Territory of Somaliland

Occupations
  • Model
  • actress
  • businesswoman
Years&#;active–present
Spouses

  • Hassan

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    (m.&#;; div.&#;)&#;

  • Spencer Haywood

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    (m.&#;; div.&#;)&#;

  • David Bowie

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    (m.&#;; died&#;)&#;
Children2
AwardsFashion Icon lifetime achievement award
Modeling information
Height&#;m (5&#;ft 9+1&#;2&#;in)
Hair colorDark brown[1]
AgencyTess Management (London)
Website

Iman Mohamed Abdulmajid (Somali: Iimaan Maxamed Cabdulmajiid; born Zara Mohamed Abdulmajid, 25 July [2]), known mononymously as Iman, is a Somali-American model and actress.

A muse of the designers Gianni Versace, Thierry Mugler, Calvin Klein, Donna Karan, and Yves Saint Laurent, she is also noted for her philanthropic work. She was married to musician David Bowie from until his death in

Early life

Iman was born Zara Mohamed Abdulmajid (Somali: Zara Maxamed Cabdulmajiid) in Mogadishu and raised as a Muslim.

She was later renamed Iman, meaning "faith" in Arabic[3] at her grandfather's urging, who believed she would "prosper" with a masculine name.[4][5] Iman is the daughter of Mariam and Mohamed Abdulmajid.[6] Her father, a diplomat, was the Somali ambassador to Saudi Arabia,[7] and her mother was a gynecologist.[8] She has four siblings: two brothers and two sisters, and was the first girl in her family in six generations of sons.[9][10]

Iman lived with her grandparents during her formative years.

At age four she was sent to boarding school in Egypt, where she spent most of her childhood and adolescence.[4][11] Following political unrest in Somalia, Iman's father moved the family back to the country. At his behest, she and her mother and siblings subsequently traveled to Kenya and were later joined by her father and younger sister.[4] She briefly studied political science at the University of Nairobi in [12][13]

Career

Modeling

While she was at university, Iman was discovered by American photographer Peter Beard, and moved to the United States to begin a modeling career.[7][14] Her first modeling assignment was for Vogue a year later in She soon appeared on the cover of some of the world's most prestigious magazines, establishing herself as a supermodel.[7]

With her long neck, slender figure, fine features, and copper-toned skin, Iman was an instant success in the fashion world, though she herself insists that her looks are merely typically Somali.

Black man model Jon Bon Jovi. Seven years after his death from cancer, his undeniable impact on music and style remains. Iman's mother, a gynecologist, gave her daughter the name Iman which translates from Arabic as "faith' when she arrived into the world with the hope that this would better prepare her for the challenges she would face as a female in Muslim East Africa. Parenthood was something they had discussed publicly since the time of their marriage, and in the Interview piece, Bowie had even asked his wife what kind of grandmother she would prove to be in her old age.

She became a muse to many prominent designers, including Halston, Gianni Versace, Calvin Klein, Issey Miyake and Donna Karan.[11][15][16] She was a favourite of Yves Saint-Laurent, who once described her as his "dream woman".[17] Iman has worked with photographers including Helmut Newton, Richard Avedon, Irving Penn, and Annie Leibovitz.[15]

Iman credits the nurturing she received from various designers with having given her the confidence to succeed in an era when individuality was valued and model-muses were often an integral part of the creative process.[11] She is represented by TESS Management in London.[18]

Business

Iman Cosmetics

After almost two decades of modeling, Iman started her own cosmetics firm in , focusing on difficult-to-find shades for women.[19] Based on her years of experience mixing her own formulations for make-up artists to use on her, she was closely involved with the final product and also acted as the commercial face of the company.[11] Iman Cosmetics was a $million-a-year business by It is centered on $ foundations in four formulations and 14 shades, and is among the top-selling foundation brands on Walgreens website.[11]

In early , Iman signed fellow Somali designers Ayaan and Idyl Mohallim, founders of the Mataano fashion company, as brand ambassadors for her cosmetics line.[20] In late , Iman released her signature fragrance, "Love Memoir".

The color of the amber bottle is a nod to the sunsets she and her husband enjoyed. The shape of the bottle is a mimic of two stones, which references to a spiritual ritual where you place flat stones to guide people who come after you. The tradition is also connected to healing from grief. Iman has done this ritual around her and David's property.[21]

Global Chic

Due to her marketability and high profile, Iman was approached in by the CEO of the Home Shopping Network (HSN) to create a clothing design line.

  • Black model layouts
  • Black model male
  • Black model names

    • Inspired by her childhood in Egypt and modeling time with Halston, Iman's first collection introduced embroidered, one-size-fits-all caftans. Her collection on HSN is called Global Chic.[11]

    Television

    Iman appeared in two episodes of Miami Vice, playing Dakotah in Back in the World () and Lois Blyth in Love at First Sight ().

    She also had a guest role as Mrs. Montgomery on The Cosby Show (). In , she appeared as Marie Babineaux in an episode of In the Heat of the Night.[22]

    In the mids, Iman spent two years as the host of Bravo TV's fashion-themed show, Project Runway Canada. In November , along with her friend and colleague, designer Isaac Mizrahi, Iman also began hosting the second season of The Fashion Show.

    Bravo started the series to replace its former hit Project Runway that has now moved to the Lifetime network.[11][23]

    Film

    Iman first featured in the British film The Human Factor, and had a bit part in the Oscar-winning film Out of Africa starring Robert Redford and Meryl Streep.

    She then portrayed Nina Beka in the thriller No Way Out with Kevin Costner, and Hedy in the Michael Caine comedy Surrender the same year.

    During her first year in Hollywood, in , she worked on several film productions.[24] Among them were the Tim Hunter-directed Lies of the Twins and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, where she played a shapeshiftingalien.

    In , she appeared in The Linguini Incident opposite her then-fiancé David Bowie. She had a smaller part in the comedy House Party 2 and in the comedy/romance film Exit to Eden.[22]

    Video games

    Iman made a cameo appearance alongside her husband David Bowie in the Windows 9x and Dreamcast3Dadventure game, Omikron: The Nomad Soul, developed by the video game company, Quantic Dream.

    In the game, she appears as one of the numerous Omikronian citizens the player can "reincarnate" into.[25]

    Philanthropy

    In addition to running her global beauty company, Iman is also actively involved in a number of charitable endeavors. Since September , Iman has held the role of CARE's first-ever Global Advocate, where she works alongside CARE to support its mission to create a world where poverty has been overcome and all people live with dignity and security.

    She is also currently a spokesperson for the Keep a Child Alive program, and works closely with the Children's Defense Fund.[15] She also serves as an Ambassador for Save the Children, and has been active in raising awareness of their relief services in the greater East Africa region.[26] Additionally, Iman works with the Enough Project to end the global trade in conflict minerals.

    She played a key part in the public campaign against blood diamonds through her termination of her contract with the diamonds conglomerate De Beers over a conflict of ethics.[27][28]

    Awards

    Over the course of her long modeling and philanthropic career, Iman has received many awards.

    On 7 June , she received a Fashion Icon lifetime achievement award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), a special prize reserved for "an individual whose signature style has had a profound influence on fashion". Iman selected her friend, actress and former model Isabella Rossellini, to present the award.[11][29] Wearing a gown designed by Giambattista Valli with four giant diamond bracelets on each arm, Iman thanked her parents "for giving me a neck longer than any other girl on any go-see anywhere in the world".[29]

    Personal life

    Iman is a Muslim.

    She has credited her faith with helping her through dark times.[30] She is fluent in five languages: Somali, Arabic, Italian, French, and English.[31] She also obtained American citizenship when she was in her twenties.[32]

    Iman was first married at age 18 to Hassan, a young Somali entrepreneur and Hilton hotel executive.[33][34] The marriage ended a few years later when she moved to the United States to pursue a modeling career.[33] In , Iman dated the American actor Warren Beatty.[35] Later that year, she became engaged to the American basketball player Spencer Haywood, and they married soon after.

    Their daughter, Zulekha Haywood (from whom she has a granddaughter), was born in ; in February , the couple divorced.[36]

    In , Iman met the English musician David Bowie on a surprise blind date set up by a friend in Los Angeles. The friend was hairdresser Teddy Antolin, who invited Iman to a party. When she arrived at the restaurant, there were only four attendees: Antolin, Antolin's boyfriend, Iman, and Bowie.

    At the end of the evening, Bowie offered to drive her home, and she said: "No, I'm going to drive my car." He invited her to tea the next day and Iman learned he did not drink tea.

    Black model ford French couturier Yves Saint Laurent even devoted a collection to her, "The African Queen," and one of the most famous images of her career was a shot of her striding down a Paris runway in a Thierry Mugler design with a leashed leopard at her side. Career [ edit ]. Wikimedia Commons has media related to Iman model. Aside from rare occasions, the couple kept the press separate from their home life.

    They went to a nearby coffee shop.[37] Bowie named his instrumental piece "Abdulmajid" after her, which was later converted into a symphony by Philip Glass.[38]

    On 24 April , Iman married Bowie in a private ceremony in Lausanne, Switzerland. The wedding was solemnized in Florence, Italy on 6 June.[39] Their daughter, Alexandria Zahra Jones, was born 15 August at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City.[40] Iman is also stepmother to Bowie's son from a previous marriage, Duncan Jones.

    Both children bear Bowie's legal surname. Iman and her family resided primarily in Manhattan and London.[41] When Bowie died on 10 January , she wrote in tribute to him that "the struggle is real, but so is God".[42]

    Bibliography

    • I Am Iman ()
    • The Beauty of Color ()

    Filmography

    References

    1. ^"Iman Abdulmajid – Profile".

      Fashion Model Directory. Retrieved 9 May

    2. ^Iman, Peter Hill Beard, David Bowie, I Am Iman (Universe Publishing, ), p.
    3. ^"Iman". Biography. 9 April Retrieved 26 December
    4. ^ abcHendrikse, Wim ().

      David Bowie – The Man Who Changed the World. New Generation Publishing. pp.&#;– ISBN&#;. Retrieved 18 January

    5. ^Marie Claire (8 December ). "Life stories: Iman". Marie Claire UK. Retrieved 26 December
    6. ^Iman, Peter Hill Beard, David Bowie, I Am Iman, p.

    7. ^ abcSupermodel Iman is Ottawa bound for TV showArchived 7 November at the Wayback Machine. (25 June ). Retrieved 9 May
    8. ^Women of Achievement&#;– Iman. Retrieved 9 May
    9. ^Iman, Peter Hill Beard, David Bowie, I Am Iman, p.

    10. ^"Supermodel Iman wants widespread education and earnest activism". Interview Magazine. 12 March Retrieved 26 December
    11. ^ abcdefghAgins, Teri (4 June ).

      "Iman, Former Model, to Receive Award - ". The New York Times.

    12. Iman (model)
    13. David bowie iman age difference
    14. Iman model age
    15. Iman model young

      16. Archived from the original on 7 June Retrieved 10 March

    16. ^Leslie Halliwell, John Walker (). Halliwell's Who's who in the Movies. HarperCollinsEntertainment. p.&#; ISBN&#;. Retrieved 18 January
    17. ^Mukhtar, Mohamed Haji (). Historical Dictionary of Somalia. Scarecrow Press.

      p.&#; ISBN&#;. Retrieved 28 February

    18. ^Iman – Profiles – Project Runway CanadaArchived 27 May at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 9 May
    19. ^ abc"INTERNATIONAL SUPERMODEL IMAN TO HOST PROJECT RUNWAY CANADA". Archived from the original on 13 July
    20. ^New Chapters for Iman.

      Los Angeles Times. (24 December ). Retrieved 9 May

    21. ^Beauty Icon: Iman. Retrieved 9 May
    22. ^Iman PortfolioArchived 26 May at the Wayback Machine. Tess Management. Retrieved 9 May
    23. ^Working Woman, Volume 20, Issues 1–6. MacDonald Communications Corporation.

      p.&#; Retrieved 18 April

    24. ^PAPERMAG (26 July ). "Designers and Twins Ayaan and Idyl Mohallim Find Fans of Their Line Mataano the World Over".

      David bowies black model wife Both children bear Bowie's legal surname. Retrieved 15 January Iman Cosmetics [ edit ]. The union produced a daughter, Zulekha Haywood, in and the couple divorced a decade later.

      Retrieved 4 August

    25. ^"Inside Iman & David Bowie's Scenic Home Filled With Wonderful Objects &#; Vogue". 8 December &#; via
    26. ^ ab"Iman". IMDb. Retrieved 4 August
    27. ^Sneak peek&#;: 'The Fashion Show: Ultimate Collection'Archived 23 July at the Wayback Machine.

      Retrieved 9 May

    28. ^John C. Brasfield Pub. Corp. (). Architectural Digest. 49 (7–9):
    29. ^"Omikron: The Nomad Soul". Allgames. Archived from the original on 15 November Retrieved 4 August
    30. ^"Five Seeds of Hope for Somalia".

      HuffPost. 13 October

    31. ^"Iman".
    32. ^Meldrum, Andrew (9 May ). "Iman cuts De Beers links in ethics row". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 15 August
    33. ^ abDodes, Rachel (9 June ). Kors, Jacobs, Iman Take Home Fashion Awards.

      The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 9 May

    34. ^Marshall Cavendish Reference (). Illustrated Dictionary of the Muslim World. Marshall Cavendish. p.&#; ISBN&#;. Retrieved 27 June
    35. ^"The World of Work"(PDF). Archived from the original(PDF) on 10 February Retrieved 10 February
    36. ^Eckardt, Steph (24 September ).

      "Iman Opens Up About Being a Refugee: "These Aren't Nameless, Faceless People"". W Magazine. Retrieved 4 March

    37. ^ abIman, Peter Hill Beard, David Bowie (). I Am Iman. Universe Pub. p.&#; ISBN&#;.: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
    38. ^Newsweek, Volume 86.

      Newsweek, Incorporated.

      Black model picture Retrieved 27 June She was instantly a favorite with designers and editors alike and was one of first models in her day to be successful in both print and on the runway. While she was a student at the University of Nairobi, she was discovered by photographer Peter Beard. Twenty years into the marriage, Iman told Bazaar how enthralled she still was with her husband.

      p.&#; Retrieved 18 January

    39. ^Krivoshey, Bethsabée (5 November ). "Tableau de chasse – Les célèbres conquêtes de Warren Beatty – Iman". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on 17 August Retrieved 25 April
    40. ^"Spenser Haywood timeline". The Seattle Times.

      25 February Retrieved 24 April

    41. ^McNeil, Liz (21 November ). "Iman & David Bowie". People Magazine.
    42. ^Pegg, Nicholas. The Complete David Bowie. p.&#;
    43. ^Pegg, Nicholas (). The Complete David Bowie. Reynolds & Hearn.

      p.&#; ISBN&#;.

    44. ^FIRST LOOK: The News in Brief, 15 August E!.com (15 August ). Retrieved 9 May
    45. ^"'He still ties my shoes for me': Iman reveals how David Bowie makes her feel special". Fashion Model Directory.

      Black model layouts: Marshall Cavendish. One of the most sought-after fashion models of the s and s, Iman became a successful business executive in the s with her own line of cosmetics. Brasfield Pub. The count was 70 dead that day, and most of the bodies I saw in the sacks were children under

      25 December Retrieved 9 May

    46. ^Serico, Chris (11 January ). "'The struggle is real, but so is God': See Iman's poignant David Bowie tribute". Today. Retrieved 15 January
    47. ^Voyeurism: (fin de siecle), Volume 2, Issue 2 of Felix (New York, N.Y.).

      The Standby Program. p.&#; ISBN&#;. Retrieved 8 June

    External links