Which model was known professionally as Lisa Fonssagrives, often called the first supermodel?

Lisa Fonssagrives is often described as the first supermodel in fashion history.

Born Lisa Bernstone, she became one of the most prominent models of the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. Her career included covers and editorials for major magazines, along with work for leading photographers and fashion houses.

The label “first supermodel” is a historical description rather than an official title. It reflects Fonssagrives’s exceptional longevity, international visibility, and ability to command unusually high fees at a time when modeling was becoming a major commercial profession.

She was married first to photographer Fernand Fonssagrives and later to photographer Irving Penn. Penn photographed her extensively, and their professional and personal partnership is an important part of her legacy. Later supermodels became more globally recognizable through television and advertising, but Fonssagrives established an earlier template for celebrity modeling.