Even those deemed the most beautiful in our
society aren't immune to tragic fates.
Some of these women talked openly about their
struggles, while others endured in silence.
And some were merely victims of circumstance.
But all of their narratives reflect the fact
that public image and private turmoil are,
indeed, often at startling odds.
Daul Kim
Daul Kim of Seoul, South Korea, was a muse
for designers like Chanel and Alexander McQueen.
She appeared in mags including Vogue and Harper's
Bazaar, and seemed, on the surface, to have
it all.
Kim wrote a blog, and although it showcased
the model's humor, it also revealed her struggle
with depression.
She wrote on November 5th, 2009,
"The more I gain the more lonely it is…
I know I'm like a ghost."
"I dunno I always felt like an outsider, cuz
to Koreans I'm kinda foreign, and I'm just
foreign everywhere."
Just two weeks after her blog post, she took
her own life.
Charlotte Dawson
Charlotte Dawson signed with the Ford modeling
agency at just 16, and went on to appear as
a judge on Australia's Next Top Model.
But she was plagued by depression… the origins
of which she detailed in her book, Air Kiss
and Tell, according to the Sydney Morning
Herald.
In 2012, Dawson made an attempt on her own
life after suffering cyberbullying that was
reportedly a "reaction" to her involvement
with Community Brave.
"Bullying is menacing and threatening, and
it tends to make somebody feel unsafe.
It's a very dangerous thing."
On February 22nd, 2014, Dawson took her own
life.
But her dedicated activism and compassion
live on.
Margaux Hemingway
The granddaughter of writer Ernest Hemingway
and sister of actress Mariel Hemingway, Margaux
Hemingway seemed to have the world at her
feet.
Nevertheless, her personal life was troubled.
Having both come from a long line of family
members who had taken their own lives, sister
Mariel remembered in her doc, Running From
Crazy,
"My sister Margaux was obsessed with the whole
mystery of Ernest Hemingway…
She idolized the very thing I hated."
Diagnosed with epilepsy, The Chicago Tribune
reported she also struggled with substance
abuse problems and severe depression.
On July 1st, 1996, Hemingway was found dead
from an overdose in her home.
Her sister Mariel continues to be an outspoken
advocate for mental health.
"I wanna change the dynamic, and I wanna change
the viewpoint that it's not a family of tragedy,
it's actually a family of complete and total,
like, embracive joy."
Lucy Gordon
Lucy Gordon landed roles in Spider-Man 3 and
2002's The Four Feathers.
And before she was an actress, Gordon was
a model, and face of CoverGirl cosmetics.
But two days before her 29th birthday in 2009,
she took her own life.
Gordon left two notes upon her death, according
to the Daily Telegraph.
One stating that she was quote, "of sound
mind and body," and one to her parents.
Reeva Steenkamp
"You literally fall in love with Jamaica.
You fall in love with being in love with love.
It's just one love everywhere."
South African model Reeva Steenkamp rose to
prominence as the face of Avon cosmetics.
"She had, you know, beauty and intelligence
which is the double whammy."
But her relationship with Olympian Oscar Pistorius
was perhaps not as perfect as it seemed to
be.
On Valentine's Day 2013, Steenkamp was found
dead in the home she shared with Pistorius.
She had been shot four times.
Pistorius maintained he had mistaken Steenkamp
for an intruder and shot her, according to
Vanity Fair.
Ultimately, he was sentenced to six years
in prison, which was increased to 15 years
minus time served in 2017, per the BBC.
L'Wren Scott
She started out as a model in Paris, working
with the likes of Karl Lagerfield and Thierry
Mugler, and became famous in the fashion industry
for her "42-inch legs," according to Vogue.
"You can't have a show without a little high
drama."
Nevertheless, at the time of her death, L'Wren
Scott was primarily known as a fashion designer.
"I was making so many clothes for my clients,
but I thought I didn't have a lot to lose
by trying, you have much more to lose in life
by wondering what could have been."
She was also the longtime partner of Rolling
Stones frontman Mick Jagger, and appeared
to have a life full of close friends and success.
"I love what I do, and I feel really excited
to be doing it."
Scott hung herself in her home on March 17th,
2014.
To many of her friends, her death was an unexpected
and complete shock.
As the Guardian reported, few people had truly
sensed the depth of her suffering.
If you or anyone you know is having suicidal
thoughts, please call the National Suicide
Prevention Lifeline​ at​ 1-800-273-TALK
(8255)​.
