Margaux Hemingway — A Whole Instagram Aesthetic
Minimal aesthetics are trending on Instagram — photos of your daily routine, your simple moments, your cup of coffee, a seemingly ‘candid’ photo. People reveal intimate aspects of their lives that were once private, now shared with the world — this was Margaux Hemingway. Before supermodels, before the lavish lifestyles we saw them live, there was Hemingway. In the 70s, she became ‘the face’ of the generation when it came to fashion and modeling. Hemingway possessed a striking, intimidating, and mysterious aura that captivated many — she was the muse women aspired to be.
However, beneath the surface of her photos lies a deeper story. Unfortunately, not all have a happy ending. Most famous personalities, including Hemingway, face public scrutiny and judgment as their tragic realities are laid bare for the public. Hemingway fell victim to not only the patterns in her family tree but also to the fame that swallowed her whole.
In the 70s her face was everywhere — from Vogue to ad campaigns to international media. She broke records when she snagged the first million-dollar modeling contract (with Faberge’s fragrances). Before she hit 21 years old, she became an international sensation. From the outside looking in, everything seemed like she was living the dream life.
The reality was much more intricate. Hemingway grappled with eating disorders, alcoholism, and depression. Despite meeting all these big names through her modeling career, she never truly felt a connection with the “glamorous” lifestyle she was a part of. Even during the peak of her fame, she still identified as a simple girl from Idaho rather than adopting this label of supermodel — a term that was still relatively new.
Reflecting on her experience in 1988, Hemingway shared with People magazine, “Becoming a celebrity felt like being caught in the eye of a hurricane. Suddenly, I became an international cover girl. Everyone was fascinated by my Hemingway persona […] It may sound glamorous, and it was. I was enjoying myself immensely. But I was also incredibly naive when I entered the scene. I genuinely believed that people appreciated me for who I was — my humor and positive traits. I never anticipated encountering so many opportunistic individuals.”
The drawbacks of fame have been extensively documented, and Hemingway’s experiences shed light on several issues that the modeling industry often prefers to ignore — being the center of attention doesn’t necessarily guarantee happiness. In her profession, even substantial success can prove to be short-lived. Moreover, there are those opportunists, ready to exploit any opportunity. Despite her undeniable talent, Hemingway’s story serves as a cautionary tale for the industry.
Following two unsuccessful marriages, a film career that received harsh criticism, and stints in rehabilitation, Hemingway tragically passed away in 1996 at the young age of 42. Her natural ability in front of the camera was apparent from the beginning, and her collaborations with renowned photographers — Francesco Scavullo, Oliviero Toscani, and Douglas Kirkland showcased a beauty at the peak of its power. Hemingway possessed a radiance, vulnerability, and emotional depth that turned even the simplest images into powerful expressions.
Margaux appeared on an April 1996 installment of tabloid host Geraldo’s show talking about her bulimia and alcoholism at length and the time in the mid-70s when she slit her wrists after a long night drinking at Studio 54. She showed off the scars on her arms. With four suicides in her family tree, maybe it was a cry for attention. Maybe she needed help.
People magazine didn’t think so and invited Margaux to be a celebrity host for a group of People advertisers being treated to a lavish few days at a spa at Miami Beach. It was the type of thing — fund-raisers and charity functions — to get big names to appear for big business.
Apparently she was diagnosed with manic depression and schizophrenia. It is sad that mental illness played such a big part in her life along with alcohol addiction, epilepsy and dyslexia. She had a lot to manage.
On July 2, 1996, news broke that supermodel Margaux Hemingway died of an intentional overdose at 42 years old.
The night before her death —
She wasn’t answering her phone and many people tried to reach her…On July 1st, a friend went to her apartment where Margaux’s Bronco was parked out front. No answer on the bell and the friend found a ladder and climbed it and saw a woman on her back — it was Margaux lying still. She asked a couple of construction workers to help her break in. It had been a hot weekend and the body was decomposed… but Stabile knew it was Margaux, lying dressed in little more than a t-shirt. There were reportedly candles still burning beside her body in some sort of makeshift shrine.
On 6 July, which was a Saturday, Margaux’s ashes were buried in Ketchum and two months later the coroner found she had died of “acute barbiturate intoxication”. It was an intentional overdose of around 100 tablets, according to the report. The report also noted that she’d ingested so many pills that her body didn’t even have time to digest them all before she died.
When Hemingway was young, her family moved from Oregon to Cuba. After some time, they moved to several new places, including San Francisco and Idaho, seemingly to live in every place her famous grandfather once did.
She had a troubled childhood in a famous family haunted by depression, alcoholism, illness, and suicide. Patterns of depression — Ernest Hemingway, infamously killed himself with a double-barreled shotgun exactly 35 years to the day before the public learned of Margaux Hemingway’s death.. Her younger sister, Muffet, a heavy drug used in her teens, was schizophrenic, diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and spent years in mental hospitals. As if that wasn’t enough, her mother had cancer (and later died from a drug overdose) and four other members of her family all committed suicide.
It became Mariel’s (Margaret’s younger sister) mission as a girl to escape the desperate cycles of severe mental health issues that had plagued generations of her family. It meant Mariel, as the youngest member of her family, faced a painful struggle to stay sane.
In an early 1990s interview, Hemingway alleged that her father had sexually abused her as a child. Jack Hemingway and his wife denied the allegations and cut contact with her for several years. In 2013, her sister Mariel Hemingway confirmed the allegations, according to CNN.
