British supermodel Stella Tennant died suddenly at the age of 50 on Tuesday. The award-winning model was featured during a celebration of British fashion in the 2012 Olympic Closing Ceremony.
“It is with great sadness we announce the sudden death of Stella Tennant on 22nd December 2020,” her family said in a statement. “Stella was a wonderful woman and an inspiration to us all. She will be greatly missed.”
Her family also asked for their “privacy to be respected”, adding that arrangements for Stella’s memorial service will be announced at a later date. No cause of death was given.
A Police Scotland spokesman said: “Officers were called to an address in Duns around 11.30am on Tuesday, December 22 following the sudden death of a 50-year-old woman.
“Her next of kin have been made aware. There are no suspicious circumstances and a report will be submitted to the procurator fiscal.”
British model Stella Tennant was one of the fashion world’s most familiar faces from the 1990s. Stella Tennant was first known for her signature tousled pixie haircut, androgynous features, and commanding six-foot-tall presence—as well as her longstanding creative relationships with fashion legends from Steven Meisel to Karl Lagerfeld—her passion for sculpture, environmental causes, and her home country of Scotland were what eventually became closest to her heart.
Stella Tennant was an English born, Scottish model. The daughter of The Hon. Tobias William Tennant, son of the 2nd Baron Glenconner, and Lady Emma Cavendish, Tennant was born in Scotland and attended St Leonards School in St Andrews. She was a grandchild of Andrew Cavendish, 11th Duke of Devonshire and The Hon.
Tributes have been pouring in for the model, who leaves behind her husband, photographer David Lasnet, and their four children.
New York Times fashion director Vanessa Friedman said: “Stella Tennant, the coolest of the aristo-models, has died. I’ll never forget seeing her walk in Helmut Lang shows. She defined off-hand chic.”
“Versace is mourning the death of Stella Tennant,” Versace wrote on Twitter. “Stella was Gianni Versace’s muse for many years and a friend of the family. We will miss you forever Stella. Rest in peace.”
Journalist and editor of Perfect Magazine, Pam Boy, shared a photo of Tennant walking for Chanel SS96, and said: “Legends never die.”
The Face US editor Trey Taylor said: “Stella Tennant represented so many different things throughout her iconic career, never truly stopped working, and will be terribly missed.”
