A celebration of the work of legendary fashion stylist Grace Coddington in her first 30 years at Vogue UK and US With the reissue of Thirty Years at Vogue , Phaidon Press publishes the first of two volumes showcasing the definitive collection of work by the legendary fashion stylist Grace Coddington. The edition includes a special, illustrated and autographed letter by Grace. The 408-page collection of Grace Coddington's greatest work as a fashion stylist and sittings editor is not just a monograph of her first 30 years at Vogue, it is also a visual reminiscence of 30 years of British and American Vogue's best work. The photographers whose work is Irving Penn, Cecil Beaton, Helmut Newton, Guy Bourdin, Snowdon, Horst, Norman Parkinson, Ellen von Unwerth, Bruce Weber, Mario Testino, Steven Meisel, Arthur Elgort, Steven Klein, Annie Leibovitz, Hans Feurer, Sarah Moon, Peter Lindbergh, Patrick Demarchelier, Peter Knap, Clive Arrowsmith, Sheila Metzner, Terence Donovan, Barry Lategan, Sacha, Alex Chatelain, Duc, Paolo Roversi, and Herb Ritts. An introduction by Michael Roberts, former fashion editor for Tatler , Vanity Fair , and The New Yorker is included as is a foreword by Anna Wintour.
After watching "The September Issue," I had to learn more about Grace as a fashion editor. This book taught me a great deal not only about her work, but top photographers and their styles of expression. I used to dismiss fashion as an art form... now I don't. This book opened my eyes. As a fiction writer, I could see the visual narratives Grace creates... some explicit, others more subtle. Also interesting is the synergy of place & atmosphere with the models, stylized so well they were playing characters rather than just posing.
This book gave me a fresh perspective of fashion. But I think it would also be interesting for those more experienced. Such inspiring images!
The documentary The September Issue brought Vogue’s backroom decisions to the world. If you saw it, Anna Wintour fulfilled every expectation you already had of her, but a woman named Grace Coddington single-handedly kept the humanity of Vogue intact. Or perhaps you’ve known the secret character and talent that is Grace for years, as it seems many have. After all, she got this enormous coffee table book of all of her modeling and style editing exploits published some years ago– and now it’s worth $1,000 used on Amazon.com (several weeks ago it was $5,000). Coddington has created some gorgeous, gorgeous photos for Vogue through the years, and was in many herself when she was young. This book includes her anecdotes and opinions on many of these–it’s a fun look at her amazing career, and at the evolution of Vogue in the last few decades… Good luck getting your hands on one!
As an amateur fashion photographer, while reading the book, I felt an authentic pleasure from the fashion-forward photos featured within. Besides, I appreciate her writing because her clear and concise language captures the interest and intent behind the fashion photography, allowing the reader's to avoid getting lost too soon in the superficial language of fashion. Somehow, the way the writer and editors structured this book provides a broad yet focused map of fashion photography. If you are looking for a book to dive into fashion, this is definitely of the ones you can't miss.