THE DREAMER'S ATELIER

Well. What do we have here. I know it’s been a while but rather than explain the how and the why related to my absence, let’s just cut to the chase: I just received this March 1994 issue of US Vogue and my Lord have I well chosen! Seriously, I cannot begin to explain the gem that is this issue. Remember that editorial shot by Meisel with glamazons wearing Chanel mini skirts courtesy of Karl? Up until a few years ago, I have been madly and incessantly trying to track down two things: the date of publication and the fashion editor of that image. To my joy and endless delight, “Stylist: The Interpreters of Fashion” the book that ultimately catapulted the fashion editor into proper stardom, had that exact photograph placed right into Carlyne Cerf de Dudzeele’s portfolio, then US Vogue’s fashion director (along with Grace. Clearly there is no need for last names here).

I immediately ordered the issue and, as I started flicking through it with the same excitement like a kid in a candy store, couldn’t get over just how many photographs have become iconic that originally appeared in this issue! I call the following out takes a feast for the eyes. ENJOY!!!

THE BEGINNING OF AN ERA..

Now, if only you’d know how long it took me to get my hands on this issue of American Vogue. Because this is not just another magazine issue. It’s kind of historical really, in more ways than one. This precise November 1988 issue saw Anna Wintour at the top of the masthead as editor-in-chief, a position she’s been holding for almost 25 years now. Not only does it celebrate her inaugural newest tenure, it also features for the very first time a model (Michaela Bercu) wearing jeans. With a Christian Lacroix Haute Couture jacket no less. Ms. Wintour had (probably, maybe) no idea at the time that she would launch the phenomenal trading down style or democratisation of fashion as luxury experts like to call it. A total departure from the close-up cover shots we were used to back then. Bercu was photographed by the great Peter Lindbergh in the most candid manner possible with an impeccable wardrobe edited by one my favourite fashion editors, Carlyne Cerf de Dudzeele, who was the publication’s fashion director at the time. This cover says it all to me: a future that was predicted so acurately. I love how Michaela is wearing the jacket so effortlessly; to me this ensemble is what defines my vision of ‘chic’: an unusual combination of items that brings a breath of fresh air, paired with an ever-laid back, confident attitude.

I’ve been adamant to get this issue because of its status (in my eyes at least). But thank God for Ebay. After several months of grueling research, I had finally found it. Maybe I paid for it a little more than I should have but it was well worth it. After all, this is where it all started…