Swimsuit

The Story Behind the Famous SI Swimsuit Photo of Emily Ratajkowski in Music-Inspired Body Paint

The supermodel, podcaster and author made her debut with the magazine in 2014 and returned in ’15.

Ananya Panchal

Emily Ratajkowski was photographed by Walter Iooss Jr. in St. Lucia.

Emily Ratajkowski is known for her bold photos and “anything for the shot” mentality while on set. The supermodel made her SI Swimsuit debut in 2014, participating in a beach bodypainting session with photographer Walter Iooss Jr. in St. Lucia. She returned to the issue the next year to work with photographer Yu Tsai in Kauai, Hawai’i.

As part of the franchise’s 50th anniversary celebration In 2014, artist Joanne Gair recreated a series of iconic swimsuits in body paint on five models. Ratajkowski’s suit was an homage to famous guitar pick suit made by Susan Holmes that Bar Rafaeli wore for the Music Issue in 2007. 

Gair carefully painted each individual guitar pick onto Ratajkowski’s body, with each triangle shape emblazoned with “SI.” A sparkly chain strap made out of rhinestones lay flat along Ratajkowski’s hips, behind her neck and across her back.

“The color is going in on the guitar picks,” Gair explained. “There’s dimension and sparkle going on with the chain.”

“[This] is so exciting,” the My Body author said while the suit was being applied. “I was 9 years old when the first image came out and didn’t really understand how sexy it was.”

Here’s a look back at some of our favorite photos from Ratajkowski’s body painting photo shoot in St. Lucia.

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MTY5MjQzNjczMjQyOTA0MDI3
MTY5MjQzNjgyMzc0NjkwMjY3
MTY5MjQzNjgyOTA1NjYyOTM5
MTY5MjQzNjcyOTcyMzcxNDE5
MTY5MjQzNjcyOTczNzQ3Njc1
MTY5MjQzNjczMjQxMzk2Njk5
MTY5MjQzNjgyNjM4ODAwMzQ3
MTY5MjQzNjgyOTA1MDczMTE1

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Ananya Panchal
ANANYA PANCHAL

Ananya Panchal is a writer on the Lifestyle and Trending News team for SI Swimsuit. Before joining SI Swimsuit in 2022, she worked at Bustle, the San Francisco Chronicle and the TODAY Show. When she is not writing or doom-scrolling on social media, Panchal can be found playing sudoku, rewatching One Tree Hill or trying new restaurants. She's also a coffee and chocolate (separately) enthusiast. Panchal has a bachelor’s in communications and journalism from Boston University.

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