Such sad news before Christmas. Former British supermodel Stella Tennant has died at the age of 50, only 5 days after her birthday. «It is with great sadness we announce the sudden death of Stella Tennant on 22nd December 2020,» the family said in a statement to the PA news agency. «Stella was a wonderful woman and an inspiration to us all. She will be greatly missed.»
Stella Tennant with me in 2016 in Cuba with CHANEL
The circumstances of her sudden death have not been revealed and the family asked for their privacy to be respected which is fully understandable. Stella was married to French-born photographer David Lasnet in in 1999. They had four children together in total, of which the youngest is only 15. In August it was revealed, that they had separated after 21 years of marriage earlier this year.
Stella Tennant and David Lasnet at Oxnam Kirk Church where they got married in 1999.
The granddaughter of Andrew Cavendish, 11th Duke of Devonshire and The Hon. Deborah Mitford, one of the well-known aristocratic siblings, the Mitford sisters, Tennant was born in Scotland and attended St Leonards School in St Andrews. Her parents are The Hon. Tobias William Tennant, son of the 2nd Baron Glenconner, and Lady Emma Cavendish.
Stella shot by Steven Meisel for Vogue UK, December 1993
Tennant studied sculpture at Winchester School of Art. In 1993 she sent photographs of herself to a high fashion magazine, and a friend introduced her to fashion writer Plum Sykes. She had recently had her nasal septum pierced, which was an unusual look for models at the time, and Sykes was taken aback. In the same year, she attracted the attention of photographers such as Steven Meisel and Bruce Weber and soon achieved success as a fashion model, posing for magazines such as French, British and Italian Vogue as well as Harper’s Bazaar and Numero. Later i the ’90s, fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld unveiled her as the new face of Chanel, noting her resemblance to Coco Chanel.
CHANEL campaign S/S 1997
She also appeared in numerous advertising campaigns, including Calvin Klein, Chanel, Hermès, and Burberry. In 2010, she starred in L.K.Bennett’s S/S campaign photographed by Tim Walker. She also starred in the closing ceremony of the 2012 London Olympic Games alongside fellow British models like Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell.
Rest in Peace, Stella! You will be missed!
LoL, Sandra
Photos: © Sandra Bauknecht, and via VOGUE
