Paulina Porizkova built a legendary career in front of the camera, becoming one of the most recognizable faces of the 1980s and ’90s. Yet behind the glossy covers and runway lights, the supermodel now reveals a far more troubling reality. At 60, Paulina Porizkova is revisiting the teenage years that launched her into international fame and confronting what she once accepted as normal.
In a recent interview, Paulina Porizkova spoke candidly about how the fashion industry exposed her to inappropriate behavior long before she understood it. According to Fox News, she now recognizes that many of those early encounters amounted to sexual harassment—even though, at the time, she believed they were simply part of the job.
Paulina Porizkova Recalls Modeling Alone At 15
Porizkova began modeling at 15 during a summer break in Paris. Agencies scheduled four to ten “go-and-sees” each day and sent her across the city alone, even though she did not speak the language or know her surroundings. While some meetings took place in professional offices, others unfolded in private apartments and hotel rooms.
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Paulina Porizkova at the 2018 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue Launch Celebration in New York City.
Men greeted her in bathrobes. Some asked her to pose topless for “casual” photos. For years, Porizkova convinced herself this behavior came with the paycheck. “I took it all for granted,” she admitted, explaining that she believed her job required her to fend off advances politely so she would not lose work. Only in the 1990s, after watching a discussion about workplace harassment on Oprah Winfrey’s show, did she realize those experiences qualified as harassment.
Paulina Porizkova On Power And Perspective
Today, Porizkova speaks openly about how easily adults in power can condition young people to accept unhealthy environments. When authority figures insist something is normal, she explained, a child rarely challenges them. Children adapt quickly, even when the situation demands more maturity than they should have to carry.
Despite those early experiences, Porizkova made history in 1984 as the first Central European woman to appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit. Over a 41-year career, she appeared in 11 issues, represented Estée Lauder, and later judged “America’s Next Top Model.” Now an author and advocate, she uses her voice to demand greater accountability in an industry that shaped her youth.