By: Maria Williams
In 2022, Elizabeth TenHouten released the book “The Stars Fell into the Ocean,” a deeply moving collection of meditations on the pain of heartbreak, the transcendent beauty of the world, and the healing power of learning to love again. The book combines her talents in poetry and modeling, as each page features a poem and an expressive, elegantly framed photograph of Elizabeth. Released to acclaim from readers and coverage from outlets such as the Dark Poets Club, “The Stars Fell into the Ocean” is a fitting debut for the lifelong artist whose pursuit of beauty in all its forms has led to a diverse assortment of career choices.
Men and women alike can relate to the spectrum of emotions Elizabeth expresses in “The Stars Fell into the Ocean.” Poems such as “Love Flies Away” show raw emotion and vulnerability before reaching a catharsis and looking toward the future. Other poems describe the glories and incomparable pleasures of nature, continuing the tradition of the Romantic era’s poets. The book’s photographs are artistic and visually striking, also making it a treat to experience visually. Several readers have called the book perfect for use as a coffee table book.
Elizabeth TenHouten is a woman of many talents, known internationally for her work as a model, beauty expert, author, and musician. She was previously the founder and CEO of the beauty product line BeautyRich Skincare. Poetry is perhaps her oldest passion, which has been nurtured since her childhood growing up in the neighborhood of Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles, a well-known hotbed for artistic expression since the counterculture of the ‘60s and ‘70s. From the age of ten, she began memorizing and interpreting well-known poems, making her a walking encyclopedia of poetic knowledge by the time she was a teenager.
By the time she was 16, her artistic output could rival any professional poet, as she had filled her notebooks with hundreds of poems. As a student, she was awarded The Sterling Scholar Award in the English category. After graduating from Loyola Marymount University with a degree in philosophy, she would become known for her nonfiction writing, including her work as the Editor-in-Chief of the magazines Celeb Stuff and Celeb Life, the cookbook “Cooking Well: Beautiful Skin,” and the international bestseller “Natural Beauty: Homemade Recipes for Radiant Skin and Hair.” Despite her success in this field, she never forgot her first love in the world of creative writing: poetry.
Her enduring love for the medium of poetry culminated in “The Stars Fell into the Ocean,” her first publication focused solely on her poems. Her storied life and three high-profile marriages became a repository of emotion to pull from as she used vivid, evocative words to tell the story of heartbreak and new love throughout her life. Initially, she was married to the groundbreaking orthotist Larry Lerman, known for being the inventor and namesake of the Lerman Non-Invasive Halo, an orthotic device for cervical stabilization. She would go on to marry Chris Dobson, a Wall Street Trader, then Dennis Tito, an aerospace engineer and entrepreneur known for founding the investment firm Wilshire Associates and for being the world’s first space tourist.
Recently, Elizabeth channeled her passion for poetry into a medium other than the written word: music. Her history as a musician also dates back to her childhood, during which she began singing and playing the guitar in a cover band with her friends. In 2016, she began taking music lessons again with the goal of writing and releasing her own music. Influenced by ‘90s alternative rock and grunge bands such as Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, Nirvana, Portishead, Jane’s Addiction, and Radiohead, she learned to craft her own guitar-heavy sound. As a guitarist, singer, and songwriter, she has shown herself capable of expressing the same depths of emotion through the universal language of music. In 2020, she released her first album, “Broken,” which she composed in collaboration with British composer and songwriter Andrew Raiher. Taking inspiration from her many pages of poetry, Elizabeth has weaved together songs of heartbreak and hope that feel right at home with the rest of her poetic repertoire. In 2023, she starred in a music video for her first single, “Broken Dreams,” which told the story of her broken-off engagement with an abundance of emotion and retro style.
Elizabeth TenHouten is currently working on a new album, “Dream,” along with another poetry book set to release in 2025. In addition to her multiple creative pursuits, she continues to be active as a beauty expert, speaking at lectures and interviews for media outlets about her beauty secrets and insider knowledge about skincare. As a lover of the beauty witnessed both in nature and ordinary, everyday people, she aims to continue capturing the essence of love, life, and emotion through her visual, written, and musical art.
Published by: Khy Talara
