Supermodel Paulina Porizkova has been making headlines, not for a campaign or runway, but for her bold, unfiltered honesty. The former face of Estée Lauder, who has long spoken about the realities of aging, used her platform to challenge society’s obsession with youth and perfection, particularly for women.
The supermodel shared a simple mirror selfie, posing in her underwear, and started a powerful conversation. She took to Instagram to post two candid, makeup-free photos. One featured her on vacation in a flattering white bikini, bathed in what she called “pretty light.”
© Paulina Porizkova/InstagramWhile the other was a raw bathroom selfie, with no posing, no filters, and no special lighting. “This is me. Vacation, pretty light, posing for a shot,” she wrote. “This is also me. Home, not great light, not posing. This is 60.”
That side-by-side comparison was more than just about lighting. Porizkova’s post didn’t just show her body, but also revealed a mindset shift. “This is 60 years of sometimes healthy eating, sometimes not. 60 years of sometimes working out, sometimes not. 60 years of doing the right things followed by doing the wrong things and over again and again,” she wrote.
© Paulina Porizkova/Instagram“The beauty of 60 is that now I understand the importance is IN the lesson, not passing the exam," she concluded. Appearing on the Today show earlier this year, Porizkova said, “We’re so terrified of wrinkles because I suppose wrinkles make us no longer relevant, no longer sexy, no longer desirable, and as women, that has been sort of our calling card, it’s tagged with us for such a long time.”
© Dick LoekShe went on to call wrinkles “your map of life.” “I see how you are as a person. Why would you want to erase it?” she asked. "As soon as you start filtering yourself or auto-tuning your photos and stuff, well then, it’s not really all that authentic anymore," she told People in a past interview. “I feel a responsibility to put myself out there as I am.”
© MediaPunch/Bauer-GriffinPorizkova has become more vocal about aging since turning 60 this April. And while she admits to the challenges of getting older, changing skin, shifting priorities, and figuring out what works and what doesn’t, she’s also discovering the freedom that comes with embracing it.
© David Dee Delgado"Just as I think I’ve figured it out, everything changes and I have to start again," she shared on Instagram. But she’s not afraid of starting over. "The best part is you finally turn into the person that you were meant to be all along," she told Harper’s Bazaar. “And perhaps that’s not always a happy finding. But if you try to live your life with an understanding that other people matter, that connections matter, and that love matters, then you won’t be disappointed with who that person is that you truly are.”
