Karen Elson

Karen Elson, born 14 January 1979 is a British model, singer/ songwriter and guitarist.

As a child, Elson attended North Chadderton School in Chadderton with her twin sister, filmmaker Kate Elson. She began working as a model as a teenager.

Personal life

Karen Elson met Jack White when she appeared in The White Stripes music video for "Blue Orchid". The video's director, Floria Sigismondi noted "you sensed an energy between them." They were married on June 1, 2005 in Manaus, Brazil. The White Stripes's manager Ian Montone served as best man while drummer Meg White, who is also Jack White's ex-wife, was the maid of honor.

On May 2, 2006, the couple had a daughter, named Scarlett Teresa White. Their second child, Henry Lee White, was born on August 7, 2007. The family now resides in Nashville, Tennessee. They announced their divorce in June 2011 .

Music

Elson is a founding member and performer with the New York City based political cabaret troupe The Citizens Band, appearing with them at various theatres as well as the downtown art gallery Deitch Projects. Critical response to Elson's performances have been unequivocally positive, with the press frequently commenting on her striking vocal skills.  As one of the leaders of The Citizens Band she has performed a variety of songs including covers of The Velvet Underground, Kurt Weill, Elvis Presley, Mimi and Richard Fariña, Pete Seeger, Leonard Cohen, Neil Young and Marlene Dietrich. She has also written and co-written songs for the troupe's performances. Her cover of The Velvet Underground's "Candy Says" is available on The Citizen Band's MySpace page. Short samples of her performances are available on the troupe's website as well.

Elson's musical career has been building slowly over the past several years. In 2003 she contributed backing vocals to a remix of Robert Plant's "Last Time I Saw Her" from Plant's album Dreamland. In 2005 a personal recording of Elson singing was made available on a CD accompanying the August 2005 issue of Uncut magazine (the song was titled "Coming Down"). The song was chosen by REM singer Michael Stipe.  In 2006 she dueted with Cat Power on a provocative cover version of "I Love You (Me Either)" for Monsieur Gainsbourg Revisited, a tribute album to French singer/songwriter Serge Gainsbourg.

Career in fashion

Born in in Oldham, Greater Manchester, Karen Elson was discovered at age 16 by the owner of Boss models in Manchester. Elson's success came when Steven Meisel shot her for the cover of Italian Vogue on her 18th birthday. She has worked with most of the world's major fashion photographers and fashion designers, including Bruce Weber, Mario Testino, Peter Lindbergh, Mert and Marcus, Steven Klein, Patrick Demarchelier, Steven Meisel, Ellen Von Unwerth. She has walked the runways of many top designers including Marc Jacobs (which she did while pregnant), Shiatzy Chen, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Chanel, Dolce & Gabbana and Versace YSL, Alexander McQueen, Dior, Gucci etc. She has appeared in international campaigns for Yves Saint Laurent, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Louis Vuitton, Versace, Christian Dior, Burberry and Chanel, to name a small number.

In 1998 she won the title of Model Of The Year at the VH1 Fashion Awards.

Photographed by Steven Meisel, she was presented on the September 2004 cover of American Vogue as one of the "Models of the Moment.  In 2005, Elson won the British Fashion Award for Best Model.

In September 2008 Elson was on the cover of British Vogue - shot by Nick Knight - as "Fashion's Red Queen". It was then announced that Elson was the new face of British department store John Lewis for Autumn/Winter 2008/2009. In the Fall of 2009 she appeared on billboards internationally for H&M.

Her list of magazine covers include international editions of Vogue as well as W, Dazed & Confused, Numéro, Marie Claire, Elle" and Nylon.

In 2010, American fashion brand St. John announced that Elson would be replacing Angelina Jolie as the new face of their company.

For the Tom Ford 2009 spring eyewear advertising campaigns Elson with male model Jon Kortajarena were photographed, for the first time, by Tom Ford himself.

Elson is currently the face of YSL Opium perfume. She appears in the Fall/Winter 2010/11 ad campaign of Louis Vuitton, along with Natalia Vodianova and Christy Turlington as well as the Trussardi 1911 Spring 2011 campaign

Elson has appeared in many short films and videos, including the music video for The White Stripes's "Blue Orchid", directed by Floria Sigismondi.  She has also appeared in fashion films such as Steven Meisel and Darren Lew's War Opera,  Nick Knight's Andy Warhol-inspired series More Beautiful Women, Craig McDean's 48 Girls, and Bruce Weber's Petit Fleur, Harlequin, Voodoo Daddy, Closer Walk With Thee and Karen's Boogie (all films were made in conjunction with W as a tribute to New Orleans). Elson has been featured in commercials for Kose cosmetics. She has also appeared in the short film Lay Down Lean, a project by the experimental filmmaking team The Belles Of The Black Diamond Field.

Elson has contributed to Nick Knight's fashion site SHOWstudio.com since 2002. She also contributed to Knight's project "Moving Fashion" with a black and white video of herself in a sequined gown, perched upon a swing. The images were accompanied by Elson playing the autoharp and singing a verse of Marlene Dietrich's "Falling In Love Again.

In 2008 Elson opened a vintage boutique in Nashville, Tennessee with Amy Patterson.  The boutique was called Venus & Mars- The Showroom and featured "high end rare vintage garments and adornments to cheap and cheerful vintage dress and jewels. The boutique closed in November 2010.

In 2010, she modeled a Patricia Field dress for the Sex and the City Archive in the Naomi Campbell's Fashion For Relief runway show for The White Ribbon Alliance to raise funds for mothers in Haiti.