6 Unmissable Photos of Belgian Model Rose Bertram in Curaçao

The mom of two and fashion icon is a three-time SI Swimsuit star.

Ananya Panchal | Jul 11, 2024

Rose Bertram was photographed by Ben Watts in Curacao. / Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

Three-time SI Swimsuit model Rose Bertram made her debut with the brand in 2015 participating in a unique and bold body painting feature on the beaches of St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands with photographer Yu Tsai and talented artist Joanne Gair. The following year, the 29-year-old traveled to Tahiti and absolutely blew the team away. Her most recent feature with the franchise was in 2017, when she was captured by Ben Watts in the Caribbean island country of Curaçao.

One year later she made history as the first model to appear on the cover of Dutch Vogue while pregnant. The mom of two, shares her daughters Naleya and Zaylee with ex-husband and former professional athlete Gregory van der Wiel.

Today, Bertram is dominating the fashion and modeling industries, cementing herself as a style icon and putting together headline-worthy looks for various red carpets, global fashion weeks and glamorous big city GNO’s and tropical vacations. She is also the founder of haircare brand We the Curl.

“I remember when I started [modeling] people always told me that it would never work out. They told me that I’d never get to do big jobs because I wasn’t tall enough, didn’t have a very skinny, high-fashion body type. It’s so important to give chances to girls who aren’t tall, who have curves, and are different. That way you can tell that fashion is changing, now it’s all about who you are,” she shared. “In my first year I did [SI Swimsuit] and people started to know who I was; in my second year I saw my social media grow and I began working more on branding myself. I’m really happy because I’m getting to doing things that are harder, especially for a girl my size and height. I’m seeing changes in my career right now and that’s one of the things I’m so excited about, but it isn’t just about having the most followers. At a certain point in your career you have to have the right management and people behind you; that is what takes you to the next level.”

Below are six magnificent photos from her 2017 SI Swimsuit photo shoot in Curaçao.

Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

Published Jul 11, 2024

ANANYA PANCHAL

Ananya Panchal is a writer on the Lifestyle and Trending News team for SI Swimsuit, where she covers fashion, beauty, pop culture and the internet’s favorite personalities and trends. She joined the brand in 2022 after roles at Bustle, the San Francisco Chronicle and the TODAY Show. Panchal loves to write about fashion in all its forms—from standout runway moments and evolving street style to the best accessories to elevate each season’s wardrobe (she rarely goes anywhere without a stack of jewelry and a coffee in hand). A self-proclaimed beauty fanatic, she’s always on the hunt for must-have products and loves breaking down viral trends. Her favorite series at the moment is spotlighting female founders and the stories behind the brands they’ve built—especially those shaping the future of fashion, wellness and tech. She is based between New York City and San Francisco and, when she’s not writing, can be found rewatching One Tree Hill, playing sudoku, trying new restaurants or ranking her favorite Disney Channel Original Movies. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communications and journalism with a minor in criminal justice from Boston University.