Cindy Crawford Plans to Retire at Age 50

Supermodel Cindy Crawford will be turning 50 on February 20 — and she’s marking the milestone with a retirement from modeling. She recently told United Airlines’ in-house magazine Rhapsody that she will be retiring upon hitting her 50th birthday. “I’m sure that I’ll have my picture taken for 10 more years, but not as a model anymore,” she said. “And that’s okay. I’ve done it. I’ve worked with all these incredible photographers. What else do I need to do? I can’t keep reinventing myself. I shouldn’t have to keep proving myself. I don’t want to.”

Crawford’s career has spanned much longer than the average model’s — her last campaign was very recently Balmain Spring 2016, photographed by Steven Klein alongside ‘90s giants Naomi Campbell and Claudia Schiffer. The high school class valedictorian from Chicago became a household name in the 1980s, appearing on the covers of magazines like Vogue and walking for major designers like Valentino and Chanel. Even after she stopped working the catwalk circuits, she continued to exert her influence on the fashion industry, from hosting MTV’s House of Style to launching her own beauty line, called Meaningful Beauty. In July 2015, it was announced that she would be producing her own NBC drama on the modeling industry in the ‘80s.

“I was like, I love my job, but am I really that superficial that I just love getting my hair and makeup done and looking beautiful?” she also told Rhapsody “And what I realized was that what I really love and am passionate about is communication. And the way that I have been communicating for the past 30 years has been through pictures.” Crawford’s 14-year-old daughter, Kaia Gerber, is also pursuing modeling, most recently appearing in Teen Vogue — but with a lifetime of wisdom and perspective from her mother behind her.

Related:

Cindy Crawford on the Viral Photo Leak, Turning 50, and Tequila

Why Cindy Crawford Won’t Ever Let Herself Go

Your Favorite ‘90s Supermodels Reunite for New Balmain Campaign