Yasmeen Ghauri ( ur, {{Nastaliq, ; born March 23, 1971) is a Canadian former model.

Early life and career

Ghauri was born in Montreal to a German mother and a Pakistani father. Ghauri had a difficult childhood due to being bullied at school by her classmates for her Pakistani heritage. In an instagram post Ghauri has stated. "People often ask if I am Pakistani or Indian. I identify with both, as my father was born in Hyderabad India, but moved to Karachi at a young age due to religious intolerance. If you go back a few more generations, my father's family actually came from Ghōr Afghanistan. I'm am proud to be half South + Central Asian, it's such a rich and beautiful culture." When she was 17, Ghauri was discovered while working at a

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...

restaurant by Montreal hairdresser and artistic director of Platine Coiffure, Edward Zaccaria.{{cite web, title=Yasmeen Ghauri – Biography, url=http://www.askmen.com/women/models/26_yasmeen_ghauri.html, access-date=2008-06-08, archive-date=2008-07-25, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080725024111/http://www.askmen.com/women/models/26_yasmeen_ghauri.html, url-status=dead Despite her parents' disapproval, Ghauri actively pursued a modeling career, debuting in Milan and Paris before moving to New York City in 1990. Here, she was noticed by fashion critics and labels alike. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' described her runway walk as a "ball-bearing swivel of her hips". Her appearance prompted part of what is now termed in fashion the "Canadian invasion".

Achievements

{{One source, section, date=June 2021 Ghauri enjoyed fame in the early 1990s after her first major cover with ''

Elle ''Elle'' (stylized ''ELLE'') is a worldwide women's magazine of French origin that offers a mix of fashion and beauty content, together with culture, society and lifestyle. The title means "she" or "her" in French. ''Elle'' is considered the w ...

'' in January 1991. She was also seen in

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

's music video for the song "

Sacrifice Sacrifice is the offering of material possessions or the lives of animals or humans to a deity as an act of propitiation or worship. Evidence of ritual animal sacrifice has been seen at least since ancient Hebrews and Greeks, and possibly exi ...

", in which she starred opposite

Chris Isaak Christopher Joseph Isaak (born June 26, 1956) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional actor. He is widely known for his breakthrough hit and signature song "Wicked Game", as well as other songs such as "Blue Hotel", "Baby D ...

. Soon after, she became the face of both

Chanel Chanel ( , ) is a French high-end luxury fashion house founded in 1910 by Coco Chanel in Paris. Chanel specializes in women's ready-to-wear, luxury goods, and accessories and licenses its name and branding to Luxottica for eyewear. Chanel is ...

and

Jil Sander Heidemarie Jiline "Jil" Sander (; b. 27 November 1943) is a German minimalist fashion designer and the founder of the Jil Sander fashion house. Early life and education Heidemarie Jiline Sander was born in Wesselburen, Nazi Germany on 27 Novemb ...

. By the end of 1990, Ghauri appeared on the cover of French ''Elle'' in July and December. In September, she graced the catwalk for

Gianni Versace Giovanni Maria "Gianni" Versace (; 2 December 1946 – 15 July 1997) was an Italian fashion designer, socialite and businessman. He was the founder of Versace, an international luxury-fashion house that produces accessories, fragrances, make-u ...

's show in Milan and by the next month, she was walking for Chanel,

Helmut Lang Helmut Lang may refer to: * Helmut Lang (artist) (born 1956), Austrian-born fashion designer and artist * Helmut Lang (athlete) (born 1940), Austrian Olympic sprinter * Helmut Lang (fashion brand) The Helmut Lang fashion brand was created by A ...

Jean Paul Gaultier Jean Paul Gaultier (; born 24 April 1952) is a French haute couture and prêt-à-porter fashion designer. He is described as an "enfant terrible" of the fashion industry and is known for his unconventional designs with motifs including corsets, ...

and

Lanvin Lanvin () is a French Luxury goods, luxury fashion house based in Paris. Founded in 1889 by Jeanne Lanvin, it is the oldest French fashion house still in operation. Since 2018, it has been a subsidiary of Shanghai-based Lanvin Group. Bruno Sialel ...

in Paris. She became the face of

Christian Dior Christian Ernest Dior (; 21 January 1905 – 24 October 1957) was a French fashion designer, best known as the founder of one of the world's top fashion houses, Christian Dior SE, which is now owned by parent company LVMH. His fashion houses a ...

and Anne Klein in 1991. In January, she was photographed by

Steven Meisel Steven Meisel (born June 5, 1954) is an American fashion photographer, who obtained popularity and critical acclaim with his work in ''Vogue'' and ''Vogue Italia'' as well as his photographs of friend Madonna in her 1992 book, ''Sex''. He is n ...

for the cover of Italian ''

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'' and toward the end of the year, she appeared in British and Italian ''Vogue'' editorials. Photographer

Patrick Demarchelier Patrick Demarchelier (; 21 August 1943 – 31 March 2022) was a French fashion photographer. Early life and education Born near Paris in 1943 to a modest family, Demarchelier spent his childhood in Le Havre, Normandy, with his mother and four ...

, who photographed her for the Italian issue, called her his favourite subject.{{cite web, url=http://nymag.com/fashion/models/yghauri/yasmeenghauri/, title=Yasmeen Ghauri – Model Profile, magazine=

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, access-date=2008-06-08 In 1992, Ghauri landed a contract with

Victoria's Secret Victoria's Secret is an American lingerie, clothing, and beauty retailer known for high visibility marketing and branding, starting with a popular catalog and followed by an annual fashion show with supermodels dubbed Angels. As the largest ret ...

and became a face of Valentino couture and Versace. According to an NYMag.com online model profile, Ghauri walked the controversial Gianni Versace "Bondage" show in Milan in February 1992. Ghauri became the face of

Hermès Hermès International S.A., or simply Hermès ( , ), is a French luxury design house established in 1837. It specializes in leather goods, lifestyle accessories, home furnishings, perfumery, jewelry, watches and ready-to-wear. Its logo, since ...

and

in 1993 and was photographed by

Gilles Bensimon Gilles Francis Charles Bensimon (; born 29 February 1944) is a French fashion photographer and the former International Creative Director of ''Elle'' magazine. He has also been the photographer on the reality television series ''America's Next To ...

for ''Elle''. She appeared in the 1995 documentary '' Unzipped'' by

Isaac Mizrahi Isaac Mizrahi (born October 14, 1961) is an American fashion designer, television presenter and chief designer of the Isaac Mizrahi brand for Xcel Brands. Based in New York City, he is best known for his eponymous fashion lines. Mizrahi was prev ...

, and walked the 1996 annual Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.

Retirement

When Ghauri stepped out of the Yves Saint Laurent show in 1997 at the last minute, speculations arose that she was retiring. She did indeed retire to start a family with her husband, lawyer Ralph Bernstein.{{cite magazine , last=Okwodu , first=Janelle , title='90s Models: A Look Back at the Faces—Famous and Slightly Less So—That Defined a Decade , url=https://www.vogue.com/article/georgina-grenville-yasmeen-ghauri-90s-models-now , magazine=

, access-date=5 May 2022 , date=31 August 2015 The couple have two children: daughter Maia and son Victor. The family lives in Bedford, New York.

Personal Life

Ghauri doesn’t identify with any major religions and describes her faith as being ‘personally oriented’.
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References in other media

Ghauri was the inspiration for the character Jasmine in the comic book series Jonathan Steele (comics), Jonathan Steele. Just like the real person, the comic book character is a former model, born in Montreal to a Pakistani father.{{cite web, title=Jonathan Steele: Jasmine e Myriam, url=http://www.sergiobonellieditore.it/jonathan/servizi/jasmine_myriam.html, language=it, access-date=2009-10-22, archive-date=2009-11-18, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091118204703/http://www.sergiobonellieditore.it/jonathan/servizi/jasmine_myriam.html, url-status=dead

References

{{Reflist

External links

*{{Fashionmodel, name=Yasmeen Ghauri *{{IMDb name, id=1655734, name=Yasmeen Ghauri {{1995–1999 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show models {{1990–1999 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit {{DEFAULTSORT:Ghauri, Yasmeen 1971 births 20th-century Canadian women 21st-century Canadian women Anglophone Quebec people Canadian expatriates in the United States Canadian models of Pakistani descent Canadian people of German descent Female models from Quebec Living people Models from Montreal