When What Where| HAUTE'S WORLD{1920-2009}

It's no secret that Vogue is pretty much the world's most influential fashion magazine and even though Vogue Paris may not be the oldest of the Vogues, it's old enough for a little anniversary celebration. Starting October 1st and running through to November 1st, 80 covers blown up to poster-size can be found along Avenue des Champs-Élysées, spanning almost 90 years. I found this little exhibit by accident upon my return to France (although let's face it, the location is pretty hard to miss).

Covers of magazines, tend to sum up its contents, seasonal trends or hottest celebrity/model of the moment, which is why seeing all of these not only gave a sense of fashion history, but also reflected on the French society, pop culture and general atmosphere at the time, whether it was the 20s flapper look, the rise in popularity of surrealist art or the sense of freedom post-WWII. Carine Roitfeld and the Vogue team picked the most striking covers for this exhibit, including the one from the first ever edition and others showcasing collaborations with legends such as Helmut Newton, Irving Penn, David Hockney, Salvador Dali or Mario Testino to name a few. Interestingly enough, the covers were not displayed in chronological order, which might bother some, but I thought it made for a nice contrast.

 

 

Clockwise: March 1923 cover by Pierre Brissaud & Georges Lepape (left) and May/June 1947 cover by Coltelacci (right). April 1962: Helmut Newton photographs Catherine Deneuve, 18 at the time, for her first Vogue cover. To this day she has graced the cover of Vogue 16 times - more than any other woman (left). May 1963 featuring Audrey Hepburn and her husband (left). February 1990: Linda Evangelista embodies the success and phenomenon of the late 80s top models with her fierce looks and her infamous '10 000 dollars' quote (right). February 1973 cover featuring Brigitte Bardot who just retired from her acting career (left). March 1994: Kate Moss' first Vogue cover. She was 20 at the time and already had 5 successful modeling years behind her (right).