Steven Meisel’s photograph of Kristen McMenamy at the Ritz Paris in 1993 distills the essence of fashion’s transformative power.

McMenamy, nearly nude except for an ornate headpiece, sits poised in lavish surroundings, evoking both the vulnerability and grandeur that define Meisel’s vision.

Rather than indulging in easy eroticism, the image meditates on the fluidity of identity and spectacle: McMenamy’s body is rendered both celebrated and objectified, echoing Simone de Beauvoir’s idea that womanhood is socially constructed.

In 1993, Meisel was at a creative apex, redefining fashion photography’s boundaries by focusing on authenticity, emotion, and innovation. His work challenges artifice, letting individuality and genuine gesture replace superficial glamour. Meisel’s background as an illustrator informs his intricate composition—the interplay of light, shadow, and detail heightens the sense of drama while the candid posture disrupts static norms of beauty.

The photograph’s improvisational mood reveals a narrative where models become both icons and individuals, animated by elegance yet tinged with a subtle sense of rebellion.

The image belongs to a period marked by a post-grunge ethos, where opulence is intertwined with grounded realism. McMenamy’s pose refuses to simply seduce; instead, she embodies contradiction—regal yet exposed, familiar yet enigmatic. Within Meisel’s lens, she transcends mere role-play and becomes a symbol for the ongoing negotiation between empowerment and objectification in visual culture.

The photograph’s “fluidity” comes from its refusal to resolve these tensions, leaving viewers with an open-ended meditation on transformation. Paris’s historical grandeur folds into the enigmatic contours of McMenamy’s body, proposing that beauty—and identity—remains dynamic, potent, and always in flux.