For Lauren Hutton, Modeling Was Never the Dream

The Unstoppables is a series about people whose ambition is undimmed by time. Below, Lauren Hutton explains, in her own words, what continues to motivate her.

I turned 80 in November. Sometimes I feel like I’m 33. Sometimes I’m 572. I’ve been writing a book — a memoir — writing almost every day and, doing it, I realized I’ve had an extremely lucky life. Obviously anyone who has success has luck, but there are three or four other things you need — intelligence, a certain amount of talent for the gig, a strong work ethic.

I’ve said this before, but modeling was never the dream. At the start, I had this childhood idea of seeing the world. I grew up, the early years, in Charleston, S.C. Later we moved to mid-Central Florida, and I was this wild creature, growing up in the swamps and running through palmetto groves, with a backyard full of snakes and alligators and turtles and wild boys who would tree me.

I already knew then I had to get out there and see the world. I had to. By now I’ve lost count of the amount of times I’ve been around the globe.

When I got into modeling, I was totally ignorant about the business — and about fashion when I came to New York. After six months in the city, the only gig I could get was as a house model for Dior — showroom modeling. The other model, who despised me for some reason, kept telling me: “Well, this is as far as you’re ever going to go in this business. You’re cross-eyed, you’ve got that gap between your teeth, you’re too short.” And that was that.

But then she happened be looking at some fashion magazine and mentioned that, while we were making $50 a week, the people in the magazine made $50 an hour! I swear, I saw a giant lightbulb that took up the whole mirror. I knew that if I could figure out how to do that, I’d be able to get to the Far East, to Africa.

So I went after it. I got myself in front of Diana Vreeland, and suddenly I was being used by Avedon and Penn and other photographers.

Now I’ve been in the business for 60 years. Why do I keep doing it? Except that I take care of a bunch of people, I almost don’t need the money anymore. I do it because I think it’s useful to wave the flag for full-grown women. I looked around and saw that there were no older women in ads or on magazines. There were all these guys getting old — actors, athletes who still had value — but no women. So I keep working.

Recent and upcoming projects: Covers of Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue Germany; J. Crew 40th-anniversary campaign; campaigns for David Jones, Cuup lingerie and Saint Laurent.

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.