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Perched on a chaise lounge at a chic rooftop restaurant overlooking
Manhattan’s Midtown, Dakota Johnson—daughter of Melanie Griffith
and Don Johnson—wears fashionably skinny gray jeans, tall boots, and a
trendy scarf. Her wavy blonde hair and guileless blue eyes remind one of
her mother; a flawless chin and nose suggest her father. The third generation
of Hollywood’s A-list—grandmother Tippi Hedren (Griffith’s mother)
was Alfred Hitchcock’s screen siren in The Birds—she has quite a pedigree. But this part ingénue, part
young sophisticate is poised to stake her own claim.
A former student at the Aspen Community School, Johnson’s passion for the town has been longstanding.
She “gets” Aspen, and is quick to play down its sassy boutiques and sophisticated restaurants.
What should be celebrated, she explains, is its natural beauty.
Not one to follow too closely in her parents’ footsteps, Johnson is blazing a trail all her own. She
recently signed with IMG Models and is hard at work honing the
skills of her true calling, acting. We caught up with her moments
after her first shoot for a major fashion campaign.
ASPEN PEAK: How did you decide you wanted a
modeling career?
DAKOTA JOHNSON: The whole thing really started when
I was 12, when I did a Teen Vogue shoot with celebrity kids. It was
fun for me. I didn’t do anything more for a few years after that,
then I signed with IMG. When I turned 18 it all started coming
together.
AP: Now that you’re venturing out on your own, what
turns you on the most?
DJ: I’m mostly excited about acting, which is my passion. And
I’m excited about modeling. But modeling for me is not at all
about the fame or clothes, but about expressing oneself.
AP: You were named Miss Golden Globe in 2006. Has
acting always been a passion, particularly with your
family background?
DJ: I did some acting when I was young, with my parents. In
school I was always in drama classes and traveling places for it.
Now I go to Tom Todoroff’s studio in LA, which is an amazing
class. Expressing yourself through acting is incredibly satisfying.
AP:Which actress are you most inspired by?
DJ: I’d have to say Audrey Hepburn, in thinking of personality
and character. She’s just such a beautiful person.
AP: What’s your very first memory of Aspen?
DJ: My first memory is of my fourth birthday—I was having a
big birthday party and was taking a nap before it started. All
these kids were jumping on the trampoline, and I came downstairs
in my pull-ups. I remember just standing there, realizing
my party had started without me! [Laughs] I loved growing up in
Aspen, especially in my early years.
AP: You and your family have been traveling between LA and Aspen for years.
What do you enjoy doing in Aspen together?
DJ: We all have busy schedules. But when we’re there, it’s home, you know? Aspen is such a special
thing to have had in my life. Living in LA can be so tricky. You have to be careful. Knowing that Aspen
exists, that it’s home and there’s a community there—really helped me become the person I am today.
It’s just this little town that’s amazing.
AP: What do you personally like to do in Aspen?
DJ: If you’re on vacation, it’s great to go to Pine Creek Cookhouse or take the gondola up Aspen Mountain
and eat lunch at the Sundeck. But I just like to be there. Our house is in the woods, and it’s beautiful.
AP: Are you a summer or winter Aspen girl?
DJ: I like all of it in Aspen. It’s not like that feeling when you go on vacation and think, This is different.
It’s familiar—I know kids I grew up with that I still talk to. So it really feels like home. I used to love
skiing, and then I got scared and didn’t do it for a while. But I recently went to Sun Valley with my
boyfriend and his family, and he made me go up to the top of the ski mountain. I was at the top
thinking, I can’t do it! But I had fun.
AP: You went to the Aspen Community School while growing up. What’s your fondest
recollection of time spent there?
DJ: I danced for 12 years when I was young. That was my thing. I remember doing The Nutcracker in
Aspen and some school plays there.
AP: You were recently photographed for Vogue. Tell us about it.
DJ: [It was my] first real job since I started modeling. It was pretty surreal, the fact that I was doing
Vogue. It didn’t really sink in until afterward. It was fun, interesting—a true experience. It was classy
and beautiful.
AP: What’s next?
DJ: Everyone has that thing that sparks some sort of emotion in them. Acting does that for me. It’s
about learning and storytelling. I don’t know where I’m going to be tomorrow or in a week. I don’t
know what’s going to happen, and I’m not rushing anywhere. I know I’ll be working with IMG,
continuing acting classes, and in a year maybe go to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts to study
more. But I know I’m going to be an actress.
| The complete article appears on page 146 in the Winter 2008/Spring 2009 issue of Aspen Peak. SUBSCRIBE NOW and get Aspen Peak delivered direct. |
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