BACK IN VOGUE AT AGE OF 85!
Still glamorous, the top Sixties model spotted... in a care home
AS a model in her 20s, she was the epitome of chic and worked with Yves Saint Laurent in Paris.
Now Lesley MacLennan is 85 and in a care home – but she has lost none of her natural elegance or timeless grace and the camera clearly still loves her.
More than 60 years on from the start of her modelling career, she posed for a professional photographer who noticed her while visiting another resident at the home in Hindhead, Surrey.
James Muller, whose work has appeared in Vogue, said he was immediately struck by her ‘beautiful hands and the way she carries herself’. She told him about her career, and he said he wanted to capture her ‘poise and class’.
So her hair and makeup were arranged for a fashion shoot. Carers suggested it would be a boost for grandmother Mrs
‘I wanted to capture her poise and class’
MacLennan, who suffers from memory loss, as finding something that motivates older people can have huge benefits for their wellbeing and state of mind. Mr Muller said: ‘When I asked her to look my way or turn her face, she did it with such grace – an absolute professional. She was very easy to direct.
‘I kept wanting to bring her beautiful hands in to the frame and every time I asked her to, she did so with poise.
‘I feel very honoured to have photographed Lesley, she has lived such a colourful life and to be a small part of it is magical. She’s an absolute delight.’
Mrs MacLennan’s modelling potential was first spotted by her mother.
She began her career in London, then made her way to Paris where she met Yves Saint Laurent, working with him both on the catwalk and in front of the camera.
Of her return to modelling with Mr Muller, widow Mrs MacLennan, who has two children and four grandchildren, said: ‘I thoroughly enjoyed the photoshoot. James made me feel perfectly at ease. The red and black outfit was so vibrant, it was stunning. I just thought it was a dream.’
Her daughter Bronwen Ackhurst, 56, said: ‘The photoshoot is wonderful. She enjoyed the fuss – my mother is a princess. It’s wonderful to see her doing something she loved all those years ago.’
Mr Muller said he struggles to find examples of models or actors of advancing years for photoshoots. ‘There aren’t many, which I think is sad,’ he said. ‘But I looked at photos of Dame Helen Mirren, who I find inspirational, and supermodel Carmen Dell’Orefice, who is still a catwalk queen at 88 and the world’s oldest working model.
‘I drew a lot of inspiration from those images. Age to me is just a number. During our shoot, Lesley was “that” model again. Age made no difference. There is so much beauty in ageing.’