Karen Mulder

Karen Mulder (born 1 June 1968 or 1970 ) is a Dutch fashion model.

Mulder was born in 1970 in Vlaardingen, South Holland, Netherlands.

She was raised in The Hague and Voorburg.

Her father, Ben Mulder, is a tax inspector and her mother, Marijke (née de Jong), is a secretary.

Mulder has a younger sister, Saskia, who became an actress after a stint studying economics.

She is known for her work with Versace, Dior, and Chanel during the 1980s and 1990s.

Mulder was featured on the cover of Vogue and was also a Victoria's Secret model, making her one of the original "Angels" and the first from both the brand and from her country.

In 1985, Mulder and her family went on a camping trip in the south of France.

She saw an ad for Elite Model Management's "Look of the Year" contest in a newspaper.

Mulder was wearing braces at the time and dismissed the idea of applying.

A friend took some photographs she had of her and sent them to Elite without her knowledge.

She won the preliminary contest in Amsterdam, and was sent to the finals of the contest, placing second.

Mulder soon found herself in high demand for modeling jobs and was signed by Elite Paris.

By her second year on the runway, Mulder was modeling for Valentino, Yves Saint Laurent, Lanvin, Christian Lacroix, Versace, and Giorgio Armani.

In 1988, at the age of 18, Mulder married French photographer René Bosne.

In the mid-1990s, Mulder's off-the-runway career was managed by her then-partner, Jean-Yves Le Fur.

In 1991, she made the first of many appearances on the cover of Vogue and also landed a contract with Guess.

A New York Times article from 1991 described Mulder's work schedule, detailing a typical thirteen hour day packed with obligations to Ralph Lauren, a French film crew, Anna Sui and Giorgio Sant'Angelo.

Mulder appeared on the cover of British and Spanish Vogue in 1991–1992 and became the face of a Nivea advertising campaign.

In 1992, Mulder signed a contract with Victoria's Secret.

In 1993, she was featured on the cover of Vogue in January and again in March.

Other campaigns she appeared in included Calvin Klein, Claude Montana, Ralph Lauren, Yves Saint-Laurent's Rive Gauche fragrance, as well as Guerlain, Chloé, Revlon, Jacques Fath, Gianfranco Ferré, Gianni Versace, Chanel, and Hervé Léger.

Mulder has worked with some of the most well known fashion photographers, including Javier Vallhonrat, Peter Lindbergh, Patrick DeMarchelier, Bruce Weber, Helmut Newton, Max Vadukul, Gilles Bensimon, Fabrizio Ferri, Steven Meisel, Irving Penn, Robert Erdmann, and Arthur Elgort.

They later divorced in 1993.

In 1995, he collaborated with Hasbro on a Karen Mulder doll, which spurred development of a line of dolls modeled on the supermodels of the time.

Le Fur and Mulder also made an infomercial and video.

Mulder released a beauty and fashion CD-ROM, in which she presented makeup, beauty, and exercise tips.

One of the first issues of Top Model magazine was entirely devoted to Mulder along with an entire issue of Italian Vogue.

Her two appearances in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in 1997 and 1998 and her poses for the Victoria's Secret catalogue increased Mulder's profile.

In 1997 she released her own calendar.

For many years, Mulder was among the ten best-paid models in the world.

At one point in her career, she was reportedly earning up to £10,000 a day.

In the early 2000s, she began to speak out about the dark side of the modeling industry and the dangers faced by underage girls and young women.

In 2000, Mulder retired from modeling for several years.

She made her acting debut in the French short film A Theft, One Night in 2001.

In 2002, her cover single I Am What I Am which achieved some success in the French charts in 2002 and reached No. 13 in France.

Mulder also pursued music, and released an album including the single I Am What I Am which achieved some success in the French charts in 2002.

The single reached No. 13 in France, No. 22 in Belgium's Wallonia region, and No. 81 in Switzerland.

In 2004, she worked with Daniel Chenevez of Niagara to create the self-titled CD Karen Mulder.

On 1 July 2007, Mulder returned to the catwalk at the Dior Autumn/Winter 07/08 Couture Collection in Paris, modelling alongside Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista, Helena Christensen, Amber Valletta, Shalom Harlow, and Stella Tennant.