Tatjana Patitz, top supermodel of the '80s and '90s, dead at 56
- Tatjana Patitz, a top supermodel of the 1980s and 1990s, has died.
- Her agent told Insider that her cause of death was breast cancer.
Tatjana Patitz, a top supermodel of the 1980s and 1990s, has died. She was 56.
"Tatiana passed away this morning in California. The cause of death was breast cancer," Patitz's agent, Corinne Nicolas, told Insider on Wednesday.
She added that the model is survived by her son, her sister, and her parents.
The agency that represented her, the Model CoOp, also announced her death on Instagram Wednesday.
"Today, our beauty Tatjana Patitz, passed away," the agency said in the caption of the second of three posts featuring Patitz on Vogue covers throughout her career.
"As one of the original Supers and through her work with Patrick Demarchelier, Herb Ritts, and Peter Lindbergh, Tatjana's career in the fashion industry stands apart," the post said.
Model CoOp's first post about Patitz on Wednesday paid tribute to her "iconic beauty," adding, "Our condolences to her family and friends."
In the third post, Model CoOp said, "Today the fashion industry has lost an icon," then quoted Anna Wintour as saying Patitz "was always the European symbol of chic, like Romy Schneider-meets-Monica Vitti."
Patitz was born in Hamburg, Germany, but grew up in the seaside town of Skanör in Sweden. It was there that Patitz got her modeling start, in a 1983 contest where she won third place, according to Vogue.
Though she didn't work for a year following the competition, according to the outlet, the photographer Peter Lindbergh pushed Patitz's career forward by including her in his famous 1988 photograph "White Shirts: Six Supermodels, Malibu." Lindbergh photographed her again for British Vogue's January 1990 supermodels cover.
George Michael saw the British Vogue issue and cast Patitz in his "Freedom '90" music video.
After her breakthrough, Patitz walked the biggest runways in the world.
Her fashion credits include Perry Ellis, Valentino, Fendi, Donna Karan, and Chanel, among others.
In her personal life, Patitz was passionate about animals and nature. She once told the accessories designer Kendall Conrad she was "happiest in the ocean and the natural world."
"My animals are my family and I treat them as such," she added. "I couldn't imagine my life without animals."
The statement from Nicolas referenced her devotion to both: "Needless to say, we are all devastated by her passing. She was a compassionate soul, kind and generous of heart and an avid advocate of animal rights. One of the major causes she supported was the conservation of wild horses through 'Return to "Freedom- Wild Horse Conservation' in Santa Barbara."