Where does swimsuit model Kate Upton go after nabbing the highly coveted and iconic Sports Illustrated cover? To the pages of Vogue, where the American bombshell dons the most American of fashion: smart, modern sportswear that can go from the office to the restaurant and beyond. Just as Kate swept through the swimwear world, she plans to make a similar splash in American ateliers — and this natural competitor is hard to discount, once she’s set on a goal.
Odds are you know Kate’s famous figure, which gained her a slew of fans after she first graced the pages of Sports Illustrated in 2011. Those numbers jumped after she was crowned cover girl in 2012, clad in a tiny bikini.Perhaps her popular “Dougie” video on YouTube rings a bell too. But through the lens of legendary Vogue fashion photographer Steven Meisel, her red-hot figure shares the frame with designs from Donna Karan, Narisco Rodriguez, Jason Wu, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, and Michael Kors. Kate looks as at home in these clean, contemporary designs as she does in the two-pieces that have been her calling card.
Kate differs from the fashion pack in other ways: Her voluptuous figure is far from the stick-thin model norm. She’s the first to admit that she faces the same problems as other women in finding clothes that fit, but that doesn’t mean she’s about to starve herself to attain some arbitrary size. She credits a dedication to eating, sleeping, and exercising for maintaining her measurements and her health. Her personal trainer David Kirsh credits her determination and drive. In this regard, she could herald a new awareness of overall health among fashion models, as well as for the young girls who idolize them. She is happy to work her influence to steer the fashion world toward a more robust and well-balanced ideal image for women.
Outside of the modeling world, she stays close to her family, with whom she shares a strong interest in sports and athletics. In fact, she is a former competitive horseback-riding champion — a discipline in which her older sister Laura remains involved. Her father Jeff is an athletic director at a Michigan high school, and her mother Shelley was a state tennis champion in Texas while growing up. It’s easy to see where Kate learned to understand the importance of staying active and healthy. She credits her upbringing with instilling in her a competitive nature — a trait she channels as she further acclimates to the high-fashion world, where new faces arrive every day.
Her family also contributed to her work ethic and positive attitude, which wins praise from photographer Steven Meisel and trainer David Kirsch. Meisel pays her the ultimate compliment in fashion: “It’s hard to take a bad picture of her.”
Mae West, Jayne Mansfield, Marilyn Monroe, Christie Brinkley — these unforgettable American blonde bombshells can welcome a new face in their ranks. The world already knows what Kate Upton can bring to a bathing suit. It may soon see the boost she gives to the high-fashion world — and to women’s body confidence. Say hello to the new American beauty.
VOGUE/Annie Leibovitz, VOGUE/Steven Meisel
