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Alexi Lubomirski
Michael Kors Collection dress; Marco Bicego earrings and ring.

Helena Christensen wants to set you up. “I’m a great wing- woman,” says the Danish model with a devilish grin. “I make it subtle and it always works.” She’s sprawled on the grass in Manhattan’s Hudson River Park, sipping a turmeric latte in a barely there sundress. “We should have brought CBD,” she says, laughing. “It’s never too early.” We’re supposed to be discussing fashion but are getting a bit distracted by all the shirtless men running by. “That one’s not bad,” she nods at a jogger who looks suspiciously like Jake Gyllenhaal. “You might like him.”

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Alexi Lubomirski
Staerk & Christensen swimsuit; David Yurman necklace and amulet.

I shrug; hanging with a famous model seems a sure way to be ignored. “No,” she insists with gentle firmness, as if she’s teaching kindergarten but with sex. “Let me tell you how it goes. We go out. Guys find me intimidating and decide I’m not nice. Guys see my cute, cool friend. She gets anyone she wants.” There is one caveat: “I’m only good at matching people for hookups. I can give instant gratification but not long-term happiness. You’re on your own if you want to make something last.” Setups aside, Christensen does know a thing or two about longevity. After entering the supermodel pantheon with campaigns for Chanel and Revlon in the early ’90s, she became one of Victoria’s Secret’s first Angels in 1997. And she continues to grace global runways, including Dolce & Gabbana’s Alta Moda extravaganza held in Sicily in July. “I’ll probably still be modeling when I’m 80,” she says with a wink.

Curves should be shown off when you feel like it.

She’ll likely still be flaunting her signature style—a bombshell mix of vintage lace and body-con silhouettes—when she’s 80 too. “I have a split personality when it comes to style,” she says, which may explain how she veers from a full-length Marc Jacobs lavender gown with a shredded tulle hem to a black Versace minidress held together with safety pins. “I prefer my clothes with a little edgy twist. I love geometric lines and dark romantic objects too.” As for what amount of skin is, er, appropriate for daily wear, Christensen is emphatic on “shaping every beautiful curve of a woman. Curves should be shown off when you feel like it.”

To that end, Christensen, an accomplished photographer, launched a lifestyle line called Staerk & Christensen last year with her friend and fellow Dane, Camilla Staerk, an artist and designer. This spring, the pair branched into sexy, minimalist swimwear made from small-batch technical fabrics sourced from Copenhagen. Christensen models the brand’s styles on Instagram, which pops up when she unlocks her phone. “Oh, look, it’s my butt!” she says with a laugh, pointing to her derriere in a flirty maillot with delicate crossover straps and high-cut legs. “Well, it does look good,” she says. “That’s a pretty great swimsuit if you want to show off a little. We put a lot of effort into making the suits fit like a glove.”

Clothing, Thigh, Swimwear, Leg, Beauty, Bikini, Model, Gravure idol, Photo shoot, Undergarment,
Alexi Lubomirski
Staerk & Christensen swimsuit; Cartier ring.

Christensen’s style has made her a hit on Instagram, “though that can become like a vortex,” she says, sighing. “I am so grateful that social media wasn’t part of my job as a young model. I’m friends with a lot of these girls,” including Gigi Hadid, whom Christensen has shot for fashion spreads. In other ways, though, she sounds almost envious of Gen Z’s worldview. “We’re lucky the next generation doesn’t have any labels,” she adds, pointing to her 19-year-old son, Mingus (with the actor Norman Reedus, with whom she’s still close), as an example. “He and his friends don’t care about gender, age, or race. They think disrespecting women is horrifying but also just stupid. Obviously!”

I am so grateful that social media wasn’t part of my job as a young model.

Mingus and his fellow model babes—namely, Kaia and Presley Gerber, who likewise followed their mom, Cindy Crawford, into the industry—have also helped Christensen find common ground with her peers. “We were the first group of girls who were tied together, like it was destiny,” she recalls. “But Cindy and I weren’t close in the ’90s. I was very much a Danish hippie; she was this American girl who was very professional and very ambitious. Now, because of our kids, we’ve had the gift of discovering each other as adults. Did you know she’s really sarcastic? Her sense of humor is really great and sharp.”

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Alexi Lubomirski
Gabriela Hearst sweater; Hermès bikini bottom; Cartier watch and ring.

We walk back to Christensen’s home in the West Village, where her dog peers from the top window. “I named him Kuma because it means ‘bear’ in Japanese, and he’s such a big teddy bear. But then on Instagram someone left a comment that kuma also means ‘cunt’ in Swahili!” I guess for things like that, social media is pretty amazing.”


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This article originally appears in the September 2019 print issue of Harper's Bazaar, available on newsstands August 20.


Hair: Harry Josh for Harry Josh Pro Tools; Makeup: Morgane Martini for Marc Jacobs Beauty.
Headshot of Faran Krentcil
Faran Krentcil

Faran Krentcil is a fashion journalist and critic based in New York City. She is the founding editor of Fashionista and a graduate of Duke University. Her work has been published in the Wall Street Journal, Vogue, Harpers Bazaar, and more.