WOMEN IN BLACK

Spotlight

Iman could never have written a book about eye shadow. For one thing, she's too cool. For another, her life has been extraordinary. Born in Somalia, Iman was discovered at age 19 by photographer Peter Beard on a street corner in Nairobi. Five months later, after stealing away from her husband, she found herself in Halston's New York showroom, the designer asking her, "Darling, can you walk?" While it all sounds like some beyond fairy tale,

reality was at times cruel. Certain fashion writers, believing the world had room for only one black supermodel, invented a rivalry between her and Beverly Johnson. Essence magazine, meanwhile, referred to her as a "white woman dipped in chocolate * Iman was not prepared. *1 consider myself a woman," she says, "but society has never let me forget that I am a black woman." With that in mind, she has written a book about "the unserious business of pop culture and its very seri-

ous effect on identity." Indeed, with contributions by Sandra Bernhard, Fran Lebowitz, Bell Hooks, and Iman's husband, David Bowie, among others, I Am Iman is as smart—and as frivolous—as one could hope for. Among the book's photographs, which range from those taken by Peter Beard and Helmut Newton to childhood snapshots, is this one, by Annie Leibovitz and organized by Iman in two weeks, a record to put many fashion editors to shame.

EVGENIA PERETZ