#Laird Borrelli-Persson

[taylorswiftstyle]

"Fortnight" music video | April 19, 2024

Elena Velez Fall 2024 skirt

In authentic Victorian fashion, this black ensemble Taylor wore was actually separates and not a dress. Her waxed denim jacket as previously posted was by Unttld and this ruffled skirt by Elena Valez from her Fall 2024 collection which only debuted this past February. Elena told Laird Borrelli-Persson for Vogue that her “purest objective as a brand is to really bring a lost Midwestern woman back to the American cultural narrative.” Her desires in this collection were to bring a “more multi-dimensional representation of womanhood, good and bad; one that accepts the difficult, complicated, ugly truth of being a woman as part of the beauty that makes us whole and complete and 360. It’s a character journey that sometimes goes through an antagonist journey, but ultimately resolves itself with meaning and goodwill.” I frankly can’t think of a better ethos to match an album that centers much of its narrative on Taylor exposing wounds many of which she describes as “self-inflicted.” 

It’s my suspicion that TTPD is not an album that will be, nor was designed with the intention of, understood or liked by the masses. To my ears (and still overwhelmed brain feeling like I’ve absorbed an encyclopedia of words across these 31 songs) this is an album for ‘Swiftie scholars’ who have the time, space, and devotion to wade through the heaviness of an album this dense and complicated. And that’s okay! When Taylor described this album as one that she needed to make, now that we have it I interpret her meaning as her willfully confronting and hurdling over the elephant in the studio with her. Addressing the “how did it end?” questions that will plague her as soon as possible and structuring it in an album messy, complicated, and strewn with all her most vicious thoughts about the last year of her life in order to get out from under the weighted blanket of those expectations, clearing a path for her next LP to be constructed in clearer air. 

Worn with: Unttld jacket

[moonfirebrides]

This New Line of Bridal Hats Lets a Woman “Be the Bride and the Cake” 

BY LAIRD BORRELLI-PERSSON

[lizseyi]

The Autumn Analysis & Ridley London

From the catwalks to the latest collections, the mood has shifted. Here are the six most wearable and lasting trends to invest in for Autumn and Winter 2024

Recently waking to crisper mornings and yellowing leaves I’d forgotten how much I love Autumn. It’s as if we have a biological and symbiotic relationship with the onset of cooler days and shorter nights. It’s this moment that has me instantly emotionally ready for the deeper, richer colour palettes that reflect the change in nature and welcome the onset of the new cultural calendar: back to school, logs on the fireplace, and of course a pivotal point in the annual fashion calendar for designers and fans alike.

This Autumn’s collections on the catwalks and the high streets are inspiring but constrained, reflecting a much needed step change away from endless novelty towards a slower and more measured style of fashion that we have long championed here at Ridley. As Laird Borrelli Persson for Vogue aptly summarised the Autumn collections as, ‘Real as opposed to fantastical.’ Fashion after all is a collective interpretation of the Zeitgeist, and designers across the board have responded to continued conflict and uncertainty by offering a much needed sense of balance and assurance with a visible shift towards more elegant, sophisticated and timeless dressing. As fashion bible Who What Wear aptly points out "Well-cut skirt suits, tailored coats, smart handbags, sharp shoes and chic shift dresses come together to create a wardrobe that's made for women, not little girls.” 

It’s true that fashion can feel frivolous in comparison to the daily headlines, raging wars, budgets and some of the most crucial governmental elections of our time. But it also has a crucial social role to play. At its best fashion can nourish us, an art form that provides gentle relief away from a turbulent world. And as science has shown, our sartorial choices directly affect our psychology and behaviour, while helping to cultivate and project our individual identities. The right clothes can literally put a spring into your step, helping you face your daily challenges with confidence and a renewed sense of energy and purpose. In tough times, maybe a new dress, skirt or accessory really does hold some of the answers. I just hope this season's garments truly live up to the 'investment piece’ label many are touting. While a shift towards 'slow fashion’ is welcome, it’s vital it's bothauthentic and lasting. As consumers, we can take that little extra bit of care to examine the labels, ask the right questions, and in short demand that our garments are made ethically and made to last. Otherwise this will just be another shallow style statement and a major opportunity missed. With this in mind, here’s are pick of this Autumn’s most wearable and important trends, and as elite Hollywood stylist Micaela Erlanger puts it: “The fashion cycle moves fast, so you don't need to participate in every trend that comes up — just the ones that speak to you." 

1. Return to elegance

Catwalks this season have seen a marked return to the simple elegance of a bygone era with refined feminine silhouettes reminiscent of the late 50’s and early 60’s. Colours are predominantly muted punctuated by rich jewel tones in silk satins. Key styles include duchess satin shift dresses, tweed twin sets in Autumn muted tones, pencil skirts, swing coats and tailored woollens that appear to beg for a pair of shades, pearls or a fur collar. This vintage aesthetic is best epitomised by Prada’s new collection styled with vintage pearl necklaces and broaches. Mark Jacobs adapted the look with colour blocking and exaggerated silhouettes. At Ridley we have long championed the merits of classically feminine cuts and exquisite tailoring. This season’s collection features a number of elegant new dress styles inspired by vintage silhouettes that are both easy, flattering and available in a spectrum of jewel tone silks and unique floral prints. We are also introducing a new collection of vintage style pencil skirts that pair beautifully with our silk tops and blouses. For the ultimate in on-trend elegance, style your dress or separates with one of our chic tailored jackets or a statement full length opera coat. Both are available in tweeds and a spectrum of rich seasonal velvets.

 2. Rich seasonal colours and shimmering satins

Elegance doesn’t have to mean boring, as Who What Wear points out "It’s also about dressing with authentically individual style that reflects our true selves”, and colour and print appear to be the prime choice of self expression this season. While styles tend towards the understated and classical, designers are unanimously using colour as a counterpoint to add modernity and energy across their collections. Whether it’s a sweater, blouse, draped scarf, bag or entire dress, embrace this season's colour palette of natural autumnal tones including vivid reds, earthy greens rich burgundies, sky blues and versatile navy. Nowhere has this colour trend more apparent than in the spectrum of shimmering satin creations that have adorned so many of this season’s catwalks. Whether it’s an on-trend pair of silk day pyjamas, a versatile blouse, fluid jumpsuit or a sumptuous dress, satin introduces a touch of luxury and timeless glamour to wardrobes. But wear it wisely as certain styles combined with satin's reflective nature can highlight unsightly areas creating a less than flattering silhouette. At Ridley we help customers find the style and colour that’s right for them, and all of our dresses, tops and jumpsuits can be ingeniously customised and tailored for the most flattering fit.

 3. Animal instincts

This Autumn’s catwalk shows featured a panoply of sophisticated textiles dyed to mimic the exotic creatures of the African continent. Fashion houses showcased dresses, coats and accessories in versions of leopard, tiger and zebra prints, including nostalgic references to 1950’s leopard from Dior, as well as exaggerated zebra prints from Ellie Saab, all in the deeper tones best suited to the season. Stella McCartney excited us with animal prints in muted natural colours. The pieces looked more like an animal hide come to life. These looks together punctuated the theme of animal prints as highly adaptable with hyperbolic versions very much in the forefront. In harmony with this sartorial favourite, Ridley has introduced a new collection of animal style prints including Zenab tiger fabric in khaki and inky green shown here on one of our iconic shirt dresses. The classic cut allows the design of the fabric to feature without hindrance and the ease of wear suits every body shape. Finally, the beauty of animal prints is they transition easily from day to evening extending the possibilities with a change in accessories. 

 4. Late bloomers

Florals aren’t just for summer. Floral dresses and separates made a much-welcomed return for the Autumn 2024 collections. Catwalks have been filled with vivid multi-toned floral looks, from the more discrete to bold floral blooms. Loewe featured dresses in bright florals on white backgrounds paired with biker boots for contrast. Yanina Couture opted for dresses fashioned as glorious gardens that looked photographic with graduating flowers to the hemline. Meanwhile, Ulla Johnson flirted with florals in unusual mesh treatments and Marchesa showcased two-toned florals in a mini dress. Finally, Erdem introduced floral dresses with abstract geometric overlays for a more whimsical aesthetic. Ridley is synonymous with our use of floral prints, and this Autumn's collection features florals in deeper, earthy hues which contrast beautifully with our elegantly feminine silhouettes. Our new Elena dress in mid-tone florals for Autumn is an amazingly versatile long-sleeve dress that will carry you through all sorts of occasions and into winter simply by moving from heels to boots and adding a velvet jacket. Our Carla dress in the emerald and citrine Artists Bouquet silk twill print is equally adaptable and is already proving a popular choice with winter wedding guests.

5. County chic

According to Vogue ‘country house weekends are trending’, and this season’s must have heritage tweeds, herringbones, argyles and tartans perfectly capture the practical and nostalgic spirit of traditional rural style with a mixture of classical avante-garde versions. Loewe’s Autumn collection favours enlarged tartan plaids, while Stella McCarthy has opted for more traditional tweeds adding a modern edge with her contemporary cut. Whether you opt for classical or contemporary style, good quality tweed is both comfortable and hardwearing, making any garment an instant investment piece. A point much favoured by Royalty and aristocracy. Our tweed here at Ridley is woven by Linton Tweeds of Carlisle who have supplied some of the most celebrated fashion houses and designers for over 100 years, including the legendary Coco Chanel who rumour has it had a longstanding liaison with the founder. We have worked with Linton Tweeds for over 30 years and the quality of their yarn is second to none, lending our tweed garments a unique combination of fluidity, softness and durability. As shown this season in our tailored tweed jackets, over coats, skirts and trousers.

6. Boho sleek

Customers yearn for pieces that will stand the test of time, and increasingly these days act as an investment for future fashion resale. Or styles that can be easily repurposed with a few key pieces to create a fresh, updated look. Timelessness needn’t be limited to a sombre aesthetic of quiet luxury. A glance at this season’s catwalks proves that the bohemian, laid back, creative aesthetic of the 70’s seems just as timeless and relevant as ever. And as Who What Wear points out there has been a recent spike in searches for boho fashion. Successively championed by the likes of Chanel and Fendi with chiffon blouses, tiered dresses and aviator glasses, the look is back with vengeance this season lead by Chloé. If there was ever proof of the timelessness of this trend, according to Google, searches for Chloé increased 35% in the 48 hours following the brand’s A/W 2024 show in Paris this March. Our collections here at Ridley have always featured more than a dash of sleek bohemian style. Not only is it super glamorous, romantic and sexy, but it lends itself to beautiful silks, overblown floral prints. Most of all the style is incredibly comfortable and flattering to wear, balloon sleeves, a-line style maxi skirts and cuts that skim the hips and draw in at the waist all help to create an enhanced, flattering silhouette for almost every body shape. If you’re looking to add a touch of sleek boho glamour to your wardrobe this autumn, our new Ella dress is perfect and can be customised for your perfect fit in a spectrum of sumptuous silk shades and luxurious prints. 

Ridley London's new collection of dresses, skirts, tops, jackets and knitwear for  is available to purchase online and in Ridley's Barnes store. Celebrate your individuality this season with a unique piece that's customised to flatter in your choice of any of our stunning new printed florals or solid silks or luxurious velvets. Or call us to arrange a virtual fitting: 

Ridley London, 82 Church Road, Barnes, London SW13 0DQ T: 01730 823097

[achronalart]

I don't think this can possibly be from 1931. The fashions are all wrong, the hair is all wrong, and the makeup is all wrong for 1931.

Also Horst P. Horst did not joint the staff of Vogue until 1932.

A Google reverse image search tells me these are "Models in Eta Evening Gowns" from the September 15th, 1948 issue of Vogue, which seems to track. The fashions and the hair (and the lighting and the colors and the camera work) fit 1948 pretty well.

However, the error is understandable, since Vogue magazine itself got this all wrong, labeling this image and several other pages from the same issue as being from 1931 in a recent article here, even though several of the pages they have labeled 1931 are visibly dated September 15, 1948.

It just goes to show that anyone can make an error, even the venerable editors at Vogue. And if something doesn't quite look right, check it out.

(If the link doesn't work, the article cited is "American Originals: Unsung Talents Who Are Finally Getting Their Due at the Met in 'In America: An Anthology of Fashion'" by Laird Borrelli-Persson, dated April 29, 2022)

New Fashions for the Adult Years. Three shades of evening grey chosen especially for three shades of grey hair.

Vogue, March 15, 1931

Photographer: Horst P. Horst

[roseclothes]

Issey Miyake SS24

Luke Leitch's review for Vogue:

Props (and thanks) to Vogue colleague José Criales-Unzueta, who after this show noted and posted to his Instagram a runway redux of Issey Miyake’s Spring 1998 show written by Laird Borrelli-Persson. As you can see by comparing the galleries, Miyake’s “tube veils” from that year were riffed on—and extended into real veils—by Satoshi Kondo at this morning’s show in Paris. That was one of Miyake’s final shows as creative director: following his death last summer, the Miyake family continues to hold the candle for their founder.

Kondo’s dynamic experiments with high twist yarns played against the bodies beneath them in a manner comparable to the fluttering of a flag in the breeze, an image that the designer cited as a starting point. At points of movement, hips and shoulders, the fabric found its own volume and settled into a natural, unenforced drape created by the human weather within it.

A series of prints showing grainy shafts of light were developed from exposed film, another 1990s throwback. Then we saw painstakingly fashioned dresses cut from single tubes of washi paper and polyester mix that were manipulated to fold back and forth around subtle cut-out sections: these were both highly technical and deeply romantic. The models sometimes wore Vibram-soled barefoot running shoes by New Balance in Kondo directed colorways.

Some large-silhouette jackets and coats appeared so considerable thanks to the way in which the front and back facing pieces of material were placed flat against each other around the edge of the front-facing physical facade: this was a little reminiscent of last season’s collection, and retained an impressive combination of substance and lightness. The soundsystem played a bassline so heavy and loud that the pieces of washi paper hanging across the runway turned and trembled as the models walked breezily by.

[ranhaozhecen3d]

artistic vision statement and Social engagement

In week 10, I learned how to craft a statement of artistic vision. During the activities this week, we discussed our personal strengths and visions in five years and even further. 

My design strength is mainly illustration, so I would like to be an illustrator who does advertisement and book cover designs in the near future if possible. I have done some personal and commercial commissions before, and I plan to do more as part of my further practice and to add to my personal portfolio. At the same time, I would actively participate in internship programs, working for graphic design agencies based in Singapore like Design Start and Graphic Masters, to gain more experience.

One of the best designers I admire is J.C. Leyendecker, the pioneering American illustrator and graphic designer. He is best known for his illustration posters and magazine cover designs. More than 600 original paintings, photographs, advertisements, and magazine covers, including all 322 for the Saturday Evening Post, show the brilliance and importance of this powerful designer. He has created impactful advertising illustrations, and this set of Arrow Collars advertisement posters is my favourite, which I consider has greate social engagement at that time.

In this refined poster, the well-known Arrow Collar Man was right at the centre. The black background within the elliptical frame enhances the contrast of the portrait and makes it the impressive focus of this work. Beautiful and symmetricla patterns and words “Arrow The Aristocrat Of Collars”on the frame allows people to associate their product with elegance and nobility.

With the help of Leyendecker's illustrations, Arrow went to the top of the industry. Their impressive rise drew much attention and changed everyone's perception of marketing. J.C. Leyendecker’s design for Arrow appeared everywhere in the 1920s, often with beautiful frames around his images of collar designs. Leyendecker's work with Arrow Collars marked a shift in advertising strategy. The emphasis on creating distinct brand images and icons, makes great impact on design in the future.

The poster not only promoted products but also contributed to shaping American cultural ideals and trends. The Arrow Collar Man, Charles Beach, set the standard for elegance, for what a sophisticated gentleman should not just look like but be. The Arrow Collar Man represented the American Spirit. And by such association of their product with a certain lifestyle, consumerism was well promoted. This is one of the reasons why it was so successful.

I prefer using illustrations in design because they are extremely alluring and easy for readers to empathise with, thereby arousing potential customers’ interest in the product. What I wish to do in the future is to create impressive brand images with my illustrations and create advertisements and products that can affect certain customer’s pursuit of lifestyle and aesthetics, just like J.C. Leyendecker.

(470 words)

Fig. 1.  Arrow Collar Man. Borrelli-Persson, Laird. “The Secret Life of the Arrow Collar Man.” Vogue, 12 June 2017, www.vogue.com/article/pride-2017-leyendecker-arrow-collar-man-sex-symbol.

[edenumeadi]

Referencing

Laird Borrelli- Persson (2021) The Stars and Strips as seen by Fashion Designers. Available at: https://www.vogue.com/article/how-the-american-flag-has-been-used-in-fashion [Accessed September 8 2021].

No name (2015) 10 Weavers to get you weaving. Available at: https://make.works/blog/inspiring-weavers [Accessed June 25 2015]

Hannah Banks Walker (2023) These designers believe that traditional craftmanship is the future of fashion. Available at: https://www.harpersbazaar.com/uk/fashion/a44670972/fashion-designers-traditional-craftsmanship/ [Accessed 4 August 2023]

No name (2021) Studio, street and smile. Available at: https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/james-barnor

No name (2023) https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/althea-mcnish-an-introduction

No name https://largebeast.tumblr.com/post/76144046608/by-tyler-spangler

No namehttps://caralondonuca.wordpress.com/2019/01/05/artist-research/

[chloeunitfive]

Sustainable fashion brands:

Ka-Sha, India

"Change by design" is a type of slogan for Karishma Shahani-Khan and her Maharashtra, India-based label, Ka-Sha. Ka-Sha's tale is as much about the craftsmen she works with around the country as it is about the natural, hand-dyed materials and zero-waste design approaches. "We use clothing to celebrate handcraft and artisanal techniques, both new and old," adds Shahani-Khan. Heart to Haat, the label's capsule project, is made completely of abandoned fabrics and clothing intended for garbage, and is inspired by the indigenous idea of recycling, repurposing, and reclaiming." Emily Farrah

Mozh Mozh, Peru

Mozhdeh Matin founded her label in 2015 to "work with local artisans and preserve their techniques," she says. She was inspired by the notion of a circular economy, and her vibrant pieces, dresses, and accessories - fashioned from alpaca, cotton, and wool yarns also indigenous to Peru - have set that wheel in motion. "All artists take inspiration from their surroundings," she said, "and the climate crisis is pushing a lot of us to create inventive ways to become more sustainable." - Marius Marley

Conner Ives, Britain

At least 75% of the materials used in this Central Saint Martins graduate's creations are old, deadstock, or sustainable. "It's always about finding new materials to use and new processes to develop," Ives said. "It's a constant and hungry evolution." The designer, who is from Bedford, New York, claims that residing in England has affected the way he acquires and uses vintage materials. "When I first got to London, I spent most of my time with friends going to charity shops," said Ives. "I so much enjoy the hunt." Christian Allaire's

Morphine, Italy

Morphine is a unique brand-turned-retailer founded in Reggio Emilia, Italy, that sells old designer things - think '90s Comme des Garçons and early-Noughties McQueen - as well as its own repurposed pieces through its Compendium 01: Pazzesca line. "Our process consists in reawakening and reviving products that this industry has produced and forgotten," Morphine project manager Sasha Payton explains. "We produce one-of-a-kind items by customising and reassembling clothing, fabrics and yarns from deadstock and leftovers from across the Italian supply chain." - CA

Vitelli, Italy

Vitelli's manufacturing is entirely comprised of waste from the knitwear industry, much of which would otherwise end up in a landfill. This waste is then utilised to make the label's patented felted material, nicknamed Doomboh, which is then converted into clever, tactile items. "The atelier inside my studio is called Organic Knitting Theatre," explains Vitelli's creator and creative director, Mauro Simionato. "Every day, we gather and create." What is his major source of inspiration? The "music-driven, post-hippie" Italian counterculture movement that sprung up in the late '70s and early '80s around the Cosmic club on the Adriatic Riviera. Vitelli has interpreted this scenario "as a model of how to participate in - and possibly inspire - the current global cosmic scene." - Lieutenant Laird Borrelli-Persson

Juan de La Paz, Bolivia

Juan de La Paz was formed in 2009 by designers Juan Carlos Pereira and Andrés Jordan, who develop their vivid designs in collaboration with craftspeople in Bolivia and Peru. "We learn from the ancestral knowledge of these communities to take care of Mother Earth when making fashion," Pereira goes on to explain. The clothing, the majority of which include the label's distinctive fringing, are created from recycled materials (the range is also made-to-order and zero waste). According to both designers, being Bolivian makes sustainability necessary and clear. "Contemporary Latin American design upcycles, looks for alternative materials, collaborates with indigenous communities and values artisan craftsmanship," Jordan said. - California

Rave Review, Sweden

The path to a responsible future, according to Rave Review's Josephine Bergqvist and Livia Schück, is through the past. The team has always worked with existing materials, which they piece together to create unique sculptures. "These fabrics are so nice to work with - and in a way it feels more 'new' to work this way rather than to redesign existing fashions," Bergqvist said. The designers frequently claim that their work is nostalgic by default since their materials had former lives - but it's how these Swedes filter their work via their own childhood recollections and present interests that has garnered wonderful accolades. - LB-P

Referencing:

Vogue. (2022). 15 Global Brands Bringing Fashion And Sustainability Together. [Online]. British Vogue. Last Updated: 25 January 2022. Available at: https://www.vogue.co.uk/fashion/article/global-sustainable-fashion-brands [Accessed 6 November 2023].

[lutzhuelle]

“I think we are all looking for something that’s simple and is touching and emotional without trying so hard, muses Huelle. His hybrids, like Elbaz’s exposed zippers and seams, speak to the joy of making and improvising, and in so doing seem to acknowledge that life, and creation, can be glorious in their messiness. “In the end, it’s just about the clothes, and I think that was always also Alber’s way of seeing things,” the designer notes. Of course these clothes play out in the theater of life as well as the theatre de la mode. Huelle’s focus on clothes is based on a belief in his chosen field. The “incredible thing about fashion,” he enthuses, is “it’s so multifaceted and so complicated and so extreme in many ways because it’s literally about everything. It’s about our lives.” Lutz talks to Laird Borrelli-Persson about AZ Factory on VOGUE RUNWAY

to read the whole story click here

[venusimleder]

Olivier Theyskens, A/W 1998-99.

“Though the collection was dubbed “gothic” by Vogue, the designer says that at the time he loved to look at Florentine studies of anatomy, as well as the 17th and 18th centuries and also the end of the 19th century, with its beads and lace. ‘I was just putting together all these passions. I was also discovering how to do voluminous garments, it was the first collection where I put trains on the dresses. When I look back, some of the charm of this collection is that I can tell how much I’m trying different types of things as a discoverer or explorer, I was really doing things mostly for the first time.’” - Laird Borrelli-Persson, October 2017.

[artgroupie]

“I’ve always enjoyed dressing up,” admitted Harvey, who has penned songs with titles like “Dress” and “That Was My Veil.” Photographer Maria Mochnacz, who has worked closely on imagery with the singer, has described Harvey’s style in the early ’00s as “short and skimpy and brightly colored and a bit punk rock.” In light of Vetements’s elevation of streetwear, Harvey’s upcycled band T-shirt ensembles seem prescient, as does her early adoption of Victoriana, fashion’s current preoccupation. Mochnacz’s twin, Annie, is responsible for the leg-of-mutton looks, made of materials sourced from vintage shops and made along the lines of 18th-century dress patterns. In 2011, Harvey accepted her Mercury Prize in a corseted white dress and feathered headdress designed by Ann Demeulemeester, famous for her “poet warrior” silhouette and her longtime muse, Patti Smith, to whom Harvey has often been compared. Harvey’s own muse-dom extends beyond her wardrobe; on some level the singer operates in a way that mimics the fashion system itself. Harvey changes tack with each album, much as designers do season to season. “The starting point,” Harvey told Pitchfork, “is always that I don’t want to repeat myself. Or I try my best not to, with varying degrees of success.” The singer has also grappled with the idea of access, a subject that consumed the insider-y fashion industry this season. Harvey turned the making of her new album, The Hope Six Demolition Project, dropping April 15, into performance art via open-to-the-public “Recording in Process” viewing sessions under Somerset House organized with Artangel. Like Let England Shake, which has been characterized as an anti-war album, Hope Six is overtly political. The title references the controversial American HOPE VI initiative, which aims to rehabilitate urban projects but, some argue, destroys communities. The soundtrack that accompanied Miuccia Prada’s assemblage-style fashions down the runway last month was heavy on Harvey. In addition to playing “To Bring You My Love,” DJ Frédéric Sanchez also used a spoken-word version of Harvey’s poem “The Guest Room” (originally published in The New Yorker). Both lyrics and verse speak of dislocation and journeys, topics addressed by Prada, who brought up “vagabonds” backstage, and by Harvey in her new single “The Wheel.” What she wears (a black suit and a gauzy white top over a black tank) is less important than her stance, which is politicized, in keeping with the current climate. “I’ve always been very affected by what’s going on in the world, politically, socially, in every way,” said Harvey, and it’s because she stands for something that Harvey is a muse that matters.

Laird Borrelli-Persson, Why PJ Harvey Is a Muse for Our Times

[tattly]

Tattly Talk: Q&A with Vogue’s Laird Borrelli-Persson

When Vogue called us to talk about a partnership, we said yes, and hung up the phone, high-fived everyone we saw. We eventually pulled ourselves together for a meeting at the Conde Nast offices. When we met Laird Borrelli-Persson, Vogue.com’s Archive Editor, we realized immediately that she was going to be our brain trust for developing our first collection together to commemorate the magazine’s 125th anniversary. The digital archive is an incredible resource of imagery and information, going back to day one of the magazine. If you’re into fashion, here’s the link and you’re welcome!

Borrelli-Persson sat down with Tattly’s Yng-Ru Chen recently at the Conde Nast library to discuss her work and to review some of the materials from the physical archive. Treat yourself and read on for more Vogue history and beauty.

The Vintage Vogue Collection is available for a limited time to U.S.-based customers. 

YRC: Thank you for sharing your work with Tattly! As the Archive Editor of Vogue.com, you have a unique role of using technology to expand historical knowledge. Can you explain briefly your role in archiving Vogue for the digital archive?

LBP: Sure thing: It’s a topic I never tire of returning to! It was decided that for the magazine’s 120th anniversary that we’d scan every page of every issue and tag them so that the incredible history of Vogue could be accessed by the touch of a button. The end result was a subscription based business-to-business product. There is also a version for libraries; magazine subscribers are able to view a selection of archival issues in addition to those from the current year.

As the subject matter expert, I helped to create the taxonomy we used to tag the pages and helped enhance the data, by adding information that was not printed, such as model names. Some of this information from the old marked copies in the physical archive. These are annotated in ink by hand, presumably by a glove- and hat-wearing former staffer. To me, this was heaven, as the discoveries they yielded were amazing. The most exciting was the revelation that the famous 1926 drawing of a LBD (little black dress), described by Vogue as “The Chanel ‘Ford’--the frock that all the world will wear” was drawn, according to the scribbled attribution, by none other than Mainbocher, an Chicagoan who went to Europe to study opera, lost his voice on the eve of his debut, became an illustrator for French Vogue, and then its editor, before leaving to become a self-taught designer and designing Wallis Simpson’s wedding dress.

YRC: It seems that your academic background set you up perfectly for what you’re doing now. Tell us how you came to work at Vogue?

LBP: I have an undergraduate degree in English literature from Boston College. While there, I had the good fortune to spend a year at Oxford University where I was able to take some art history classes as well, which I loved. When it came time for graduate school, I tried to pinpoint my passions in part by analyzing what I did on my free time. Realizing that my favorite things to do were going to art and fashion exhibitions, and magazines (the latter I read and then cut up filing some articles and images and pasting others into scrapbooks), I settled on the Museum Studies program at FIT, where I was mentored by the generous Dr. Valerie Steele. I analyzed changing styles of fashion writing for my thesis, which was titled “Dressing Up and Talking about It: Fashion Writing inVogue.” After graduation I went to work at the Museum at F.I.T. and, having been introduced to a publisher through Dr. Steele, started writing books, most of which are on another passion--contemporary fashion illustration. After about five years at the museum, I joined the staff at the old Style.com, not long after its launch.

YRC: Did you ever imagine that your career would take you into the world of digital?

LBP: It wasn’t my first thought. This was quite a while ago, in the age of flip phones! The (compulsive) impulse to organize and catalog images held me in good stead, however.

YRC: What is your favorite part of being Archive Editor?

LBP: That’s an easy one to answer: Being able to look at fashion in context of the history of fashion and of Vogue, hopefully in a way that makes it relevant and interesting to our online readers. In my opinion, our archive is one of our unique selling points.

This year, for the magazine’s 125th anniversary, we created a series of fashion by the decade videos, narrated by the stylish and savvy Sarah Jessica Parker. These trace the evolution of fashion as reported in our pages. On a more granular level, being able to expand our knowledge of the magazine’s past, by discovering nuggets of information in a biography, say, or reaching out to talk to past cover models, gives me a thrill. Being able to add an ID where there was none is a small victory. The goal is not to dwell in the past, but to bring it to life; as I see it, the more we are able to enhance our data, the more ways there are for it to intrigue, inform, and inspire readers and researchers today.

YRC: Let’s talk about the history of illustration at Vogue. Nowadays people associate photography with the imagery of the magazine. But illustration was really the driving visual force for many decades. Can you expand on this a bit?

LBP: In relation to illustration, photography is a relatively recent invention. For ages, information about fashion was communicated through fashion plates. (Small dolls were also used.) It wasn’t until around the 1920s that fashion photography, which Horst P. Horst credits publisher Condé Nast with helping to develop, emerged as its own genre. The first color photograph to appear on the cover of Vogue was published in 1932; illustrated covers continued to appear through 1958.  It’s been ages since photography became the primary way to communicate fashion. But, as the artist Mats Gustafson recently told me, drawing “doesn’t compete with the camera, it just adds something totally different.”

YRC: I was so excited to see the Salvador Dalí “Vogue” script [below, the April 1944 cover]. It’s incredible that people such as Dali were Vogue artists. Who were some other prominent illustrators who contributed to Vogue?

LBP: Some of the fine artists who have made work for the magazine are Giorgio de Chirico, Pierre Roy, Marie Laurencin, and Andy Warhol. (More recent contributors include Alex Katz and Francesco Clemente.)  Before the arrival, in the 1910s of a group of French fashion artists associated with the Gazette du Bon Ton and dubbed “Beau Brummels of the Brush,” George Wolfe Plank and Helen Dryden created many of Vogue’s memorable covers. In the ‘teens and twenties, Georges Lenape and Benito were among the most prolific cover artists, later Eric (Carl Erickson) would be. Though they had distinct styles, their subject was one and the same: the now mythical lady of leisure who seemed to have not a care in the world (save the occasional bill).  Supremely elegant she followed the sun, lived in beautiful homes, and was seen at all the right places.

YRC: The lady on a zebra illustration by André E. Marty is one of the most iconic covers. It’s an amazing world of fantasy! What do you know about this work, or about the artist?

LBP: Marty was one of Gazette du Bon Ton set. A Frenchman with a degree in philosophy, he would apply his art to fashion, the theater, books, and interiors.  His was a gentle take on Art Deco, and while he often stuck to a domestic milieu, this was certainly not the case when he drew the adventuress, known as the “Lady on the Zebra.” This stylish and surprising cover inspired an article in the New York Herald Tribune, which Vogue reprinted in its May 1, 1926, because the editorial note explained, the newspaper piece recognized “Vogue’s desire to promote all that is new in art (so long as it is inherently good and has the intangible quality of chic that characterizes all the material in the magazine.” The element of fantasy in fashion is what makes it endlessly fascinating, and here, Marty finds the perfect balance between convention and surprise.

YRC: Claire Avery was another regular contributor. It was interesting to learn that female illustrators were not a rarity during the early days of Vogue. We love that! What are these original illustrations that you’ve pulled? Did they run in the magazine?

LBP: There were many female fashion illustrators connected to the magazine, and their work appeared in feature stories, as spots, and as pattern drawings. Avery, nicknamed “Tassel” by her friends, was an American who studied at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and would live for a time in France. She was friendly with Edna Wollman Chase, the longest sitting editor of Vogue, who in her memoirs, recalled that Avery “bought Paris clothes when she could afford them and had her shoes made at Hellstern and loved the theater.” Both of these illustrations [pictured above], made for a long-running series on the history of costume, ran in Vogue in 1925. The fellow who looks quite like a Dresden figure is wearing “slim breeches and elaborated coat and gilet” and illustrates the mode of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI. The other, showing Georgian style, is of “a great drum-shaped hat” favored by eighteenth-century ladies of style.

YRC: I loved learning from you about the Vogue Girl, the illustrations of women beautifully surrounded by a “V”. What is the story behind this “Girl”?

LBP: The Vogue Girl was the invention of Harry McVickar and she appeared in the magazine’s very first issue encouraging readers to take advantage of a special subscription offer. I don’t know why he dressed her in romantic 18th-century mode—to me she looks like she’s in shepherdess fancy-dress—but the Vogue Girl became a sort of mascot or logo, used on stationery and in publicity. Gale Porter Hoskins reimagined the lady, in color, as a 1909 cover; though Chase counts the second “official” version, as the one drawn by Frank X. Leyendecker in 1911. His version seems to have been inspired in equal parts by Marie Antoinette and an Age of Enlightenment coquette. Georges Lepape is credited with the Vogue Girl’s third iteration. His flapper of 1920 [pictured above], one of my favorite illustrations, wears a headband and a full-skirted robe de style, and she recently made a guest appearance on limited-edition wrapping paper distributed to Vogue VIP members. 

YRC: The digital archive is such an incredible resource. Do you know if the users are primarily fashion-industry types? For example, are they designers doing research for an upcoming collection? Or do you find that the users are just fashion-obsessed Vogue fans?

LBP: Of course I’m biased, but I think almost anyone could find something of interest in the digital archive, be it an old-time ad or an iconic photograph, whether it’s a couture sitting by Irving Penn or a select from Steven Meisel’s “Grunge and Glory” story.  

Among our subscribers are fashion designers, of course, but also industry executives including marketers and merchandisers, ad agencies, retailers, students of fashion and Vogue enthusiasts. It’s possible to search for so many things: the issue matching the month and year of your birth;  an item (miniskirts) or trend (athleisure);  a specific model, designer, photographer; or reference, like the date of the issue in which Dorothy Parker’s famous quip--“Brevity is the soul of lingerie”--appeared. (Answer: October 1, 1916.)

YRC: How does one get access to the digital archive?

LBP: Subscribers can access the past 12 issues of Vogue and selected archival issues; Archive Members can see, and search, everything. The details are here.

YRC: Two last questions! Which Vintage Vogue Tattly is your favorite?

LBP: Claire Avery’s “Blue Stocking” drawing of the woman reading Vogue [pictured above]. I like to think of as my (less harried and longer-haired) alter-ego. Fun fact: the covers Avery drew are real ones—and one shows the Vogue girl.

YRC: If we were to expand on our collaboration, what would you like to see made as Tattly?

LBP: You mentioned the possibility of creating scented Tattlys, and I’d love to explore that further, as well as a possible series with a spirited character from our past named Shop Hound aka Shoppie….

YRC: Thank you, Laird!

Image credits: All photographs of Laird Borrelli-Persson and the archival materials at Conde Nast by Ariana Bautista for Tattly. Other images are courtesy of the Vogue digital archive.

[designanddialogue]

Studio 189 was founded in 2013 by Abrima Erwiah and Rosario Dawson after a trip to Congo. While there they visited the City of Joy, a leadership community for female survivors of sexual violence. This, says Erwiah, “was the beginning of this journey, and it’s about turning pain into power and turning ourselves towards our joy.”

Heritage is the theme explored in the latest collection. One of the ways it is expressed is through the use of Kente, the national cloth of Ghana, that is associated with royalty and has tradition and symbols literally woven into it. This season’s direct references to African clothing and textile traditions make clear that this brand doesn’t cater to Western taste. “It’s about standing in your power,” says Erwiah, who adds that she’s noticed a change among consumers (and buyers), who are becoming less afraid of prints and patterns. These days, she says, people want “more human things, but also more joyful things, more colorful things,” and points to a long skirt with rainbow-colored tiers in the current collection as an example.

One of Studio 189’s missions is to be a bridge between the United States and Africa. On Inauguration day that span extended all the way to the White House: #RosarioDawson and Senator #CoryBooker attended the ceremony wearing matching Studio 189 masks. Laird Borrelli-Persson for Vogue

[balfyoddlyeager]

Shower Power: Revisiting Junya Watanabe’s Rain-Soaked Spring 2000 Collection

BY LAIRD BORRELLI-PERSSON

April 1, 2021

In today’s uncertain climate, many designers are thinking about functionality when creating garments and using technical materials to achieve it. But it was over 20 years ago that the industry started paying attention to these “magic” fabrics that spoke of the future.

Junya Watanabe was one of the designers that pioneered their use. To mimic the effect of the cellophane gel used in lighting, he developed a polyurethane-laminated nylon tricot for his fall 1995 Mutants collection, and his famous, hand-sewn honeycomb ruffs for fall 2000 were made using nylon organza. Manus et machina in action.

In his spring 2000 collection, titled Function and Practicality, Watanabe made truly dramatic use of a water repellent fabric, created by the Japanese mill Toray. To demonstrate the fabric’s utility, models walked under a cascade of water to the strains of The Carpenters’ 1971 hit “Rainy Days and Mondays.” They wore headscarves and pretty shift dresses in an early 1960s cookie-cutter vein, a number of which were reversible. This was fashion with function, which has long been Watanabe’s way. “Sometimes I feel a little ridiculous putting so much thinking into a dress that looks that simple,” Watanabe told Vogue when talking about an earlier lineup, a sentiment that applies here as well.

The dresses were colorful and girlish, featuring ruffles and polka dots and florals. “His waterproofs are fanciful, feminine, and metamorphic: a Lilly Pulitzer-esque shift that, if unzipped and unpeeled and rezipped, mutates from one dress to another; a shawl that drops to become the ruffled skirt of a flirty dress,” wrote Sally Singer in Vogue at the time. “Every season, Watanabe takes on an unlikely challenge and overcomes it with humor and a resilient devotion to conservative notions of elegance.”

The collection was received with delight, and it’s been reported that the reclusive designer had to take two bows. Outlander star Caitriona Balfe, who opened the show, remembers it clearly. “Walking through the rain effect during the show was magical... you could feel the water drops bounce off the fabric, but other than feeling it on our arms we remained completely dry. There was a palpable buzz coming off the audience and I remember feeling so proud to have been part of something so unique and special.”

Now you can join in the fun as we’ve added newly digitized images of the show to the Vogue Runway archive.

[skirtjournal]

By Malene Birger autumn/winter 2021

LAIRD BORRELLI-PERSSON 

“Put a bib on it” seems to be the current Scandi style secret. Maja Dixdotter, the new head of design at By Malene Birger, had layered one over a knit dress when we met on Zoom, and she looked fantastic and warm. It’s squared shape was repeated throughout a confident collection in which comfort was balanced by chic.”

[historybizarre]

The magnum opus of his work however is “The Arrow Collar Man”, a character created for a shirt company who became one of the early-20th century’s biggest male sex symbols. “[He] had about as large a place in the pantheon of hotness as Rudolph Valentino, Elvis, and the Marlboro man,” explained Vogue’s Laird Borrelli Persson.