Joan - who suffers from multiple sclerosis and is said to be in frail health - is based in New York City and is currently the subject of a documentary about her life, We Tell Ourselves Stories In Order to Live, being filmed by her nephew, filmmaker Griffin Dunne.
Joan, described by Vogue as being perhaps "the ultimate Céline woman", has always shrugged off the notion that she is a fashion icon.
In her 1979 autobiographical book The White Album, she famously described her sartorial uniform as comprising of merely "two skirts, two jerseys or leotards and one sweater."
Still, Joan found fame as a Vogue copywriter in the late 50s, which must have rubbed off on her, and her effortless-chic style has been idolized ever since.
Joan Didion sitting inside white Stingray car, w. cigarette. Photo by Julian Wasser/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images
Céline's decision - overseen by the label's creative director Phoebe Philo - to cast her as its latest muse is a testament to this.
Joan spent most of her long-spanning career as a journalist, essayist and novelist living in California with her husband John Gregory Dunne, a fellow writer she married in 1964.
Tragedy struck, however, when John died suddenly of a heart attack in 2003, leaving Joan a widow after almost 40 years of marriage.
Less than two years later, Joan and John's only daughter Quintana Roo Dunne died at the age of only 39 after a series of illnesses culminating in a fatal bout of acute pancreatitis.
Some theorize Quintana's death was a result of her acknowledged alcoholism, although this was never mentioned by family members.
Joan subsequently wrote two memoirs which dealt with her grieving process; A Year of Magical Thinking in 2005 and Blue Nights in 2011.
In July 2013, she was awarded with a National Medal of Arts and Humanity by President Barack Obama.
US President Barack Obama escorts Joan from the stage after being presented a National Humanities Medal for her mastery of style in writing. Photo by Pete Marovich/Getty Images.
This campaign follows a year which has seen the fashion industry embracing all ages; Dolce & Gabbana's new campaign features three stylish older ladies and Karen Walker eyewear famously showcased new season designs on models aged between the ages of 65 and 92.
Karen Walker turns heads with ageless fashion, style and taste. Photo / Supplied
- Daily Mail, AAP
