A Collection of Horst P. Horst Classics (1930s)

Horst P. Horst (1906 – 1999) was a German-American fashion photographer. His first exhibition took place at La Plume d’Or in Paris in 1932. It was reviewed by Janet Flanner in The New Yorker, and this review, which appeared after the exhibition ended, made Horst instantly prominent.

Horst made a portrait of Bette Davis the same year, the first in a series of public figures he would photograph during his career. Within two years, he had photographed Noël Coward, Yvonne Printemps, Lisa Fonssagrives, Count Luchino Visconti di Madrone, Duke Fulco di Verdura, Baron Nicolas de Gunzburg, Princess Natalia Pavlovna Paley, Daisy Fellowes, Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark, Cole Porter, Elsa Schiaparelli, and others like Eve Curie.

Horst rented an apartment in New York City in 1937, and while residing there met Coco Chanel, whom Horst called “the queen of the whole thing”. He would photograph her fashions for three decades.

Horst P. Horst, Mainbocher Corset, 1939 via

Horst P. Horst Classics, Lisa with Harp, 1939 via

Horst P. Horst Classics, Coco Chanel, Paris, 1937 via

Horst P. Horst Classics, Still Life, 1937 via

A Collection of Vintage Photos Feat. 1920s Wedding Dresses

Ruth Schneider, 1924 via

Bride from New York, 1920 via

 Chanel wedding dress worn by Betty Garst, circa 1929 via

Wedding The daughter of the Bolivian minister to France in a Patou-designed wedding gown, 1929 via

Edwina Ehrman, c. 1926.  via

Princess Anne of Orléans, Nov. 5, 1927 via

Bride, 1920s via

 Famous Silent Film Actress R Lya Marain Elaborate Bride Costume, 1920s via

 

Coco Chanel by George Hoyningen-Huene (1935)

Coco Chanel by George Hoyningen-Huene, 1935 via

Coco Chanel by George Hoyningen-Huene, 1935 via

Coco Chanel in Her Atelier Dressing Romy Schneider (1962)

Shahrock Hatami, Coco Chanel and Romy Schneider, 1962 via

Shahrock Hatami, Coco Chanel and Romy Schneider, 1962 via

Shahrock Hatami, Coco Chanel and Romy Schneider, 1962 via

Shahrock Hatami, Coco Chanel and Romy Schneider, 1962 via

Shahrock Hatami, Coco Chanel and Romy Schneider, 1962 via

Shahrock Hatami, Coco Chanel and Romy Schneider, 1962 via

Coco Chanel

The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud. – Gabrielle Bonheur “Coco” Chanel, French fashion designer

Coco Chanel in front of the first Chanel store (1913)

Coco Chanel, Deauville in front of first Chanel store, 1913 via

Coco Chanel, Deauville in front of first Chanel store, 1913 via

Gloria Swanson Wearing Chanel in Tonight or Never (1931)

Tonight or Never is a 1931 American pre-Code comedy film directed by Mervyn LeRoy, starring Gloria Swanson and featuring Boris Karloff. Nella Vargo (Swanson) is a Hungarian prima donna whose latest performances include singing Tosca in Venice. Although she is praised by the audience, her music teacher Rudig feels that she can not be the greatest opera singer in history until she performs in New York City. When she is criticized for not putting her soul into the song, she gets mad, until she suddenly notices a mysterious man walking on the street. She becomes smitten with the man, until Rudig claims that he is a gigolo whose latest client is Marchesa Bianca San Giovanni, a former diva with a notorious past.

Gloria Swanson in Tonight or Never directed by Mervyn LeRoy, 1931. Dress by Coco Chanel via

Gloria Swanson in Tonight or Never directed by Mervyn LeRoy, 1931. Dress by Coco Chanel via

Gloria Swanson in Tonight or Never directed by Mervyn LeRoy, 1931. Dress by Coco Chanel via

Vintage Photos of the First “Supermodel” Marion Morehouse (1920s)

Marion Morehouse (1906-1969), was a fashion model who rose to prominance in the late 20s and early 30s, sitting for Vanity Fair and Vogue photographer Edward Steichen. The pair created some strikingly modernist photographs. According to Steichen Morehouse was:

The greatest fashion model I ever photographed …. When she put on the clothes that were to be photographed, she transformed herself into a woman who really would wear that gown … whatever the outfit was.

She was also a favorite of Cecil Beaton and French Vogue‘s Baron George Hoyningen-Huene. Morehouse was of Choctaw Indian ancestry, with brown eyes and an angular frame  After her modeling career ended, she took up photography herself.

Later she became the third wife of author and painter E.E Cummings. When Cummings met Marion Morehouse in 1932, he was in the middle of a painful split from his second wife, Anne Barton. Although it is not clear whether the two were ever formally married, Morehouse lived with Cummings in a common-law marriage until his death in 1962. Morehouse died on May 18, 1969, while living at 4 Patchin Place, Greenwich Village, New York City, where Cummings had resided since September 8, 1924

Marion Morehouse in a Chanel ‘mermaid’ dress, 1929,

by Edward Steichen

Marion Morehouse, in the apartment of Conde Nast, wearing a beaded

white chiffon dress by Chanel, and ankle-strap shoes by Delman, 1927,

photo by Edward Steichen

ca. 1926, Marion Morehouse in back view, wearing a moire gown

with a plunging back and a huge bow; designed by Louiseboulanger

Image by © Condé Nast Archive/CORBIS

Lee Miller; Marion Morehouse, bromide print, 1929

by Cecil Beaton © Condé Nast via  National Portrait Gallery

Edward Steichen, Marion Morehouse wearing Cheruit, 1928

© Condé Nast Archive/Corbis.

Edward Steichen, Marion Morehouse, wearing sequined dress by Cheruit, 1927

© Condé Nast Archive/Corbis.

A Collection of Vintage Photos Feat. the Glamorous Fashion & Style of the 192Os

Clara Bow

Gloria Swanson in the Queen Kelly, 1929

 

Josephine baker´s Eton crop haircut

Louise Brooks short bobbed flapper hair

Marion Morehouse in Chanel. Photo by Edward Steichen, Vogue, 1926

Norma Shearer giving thanks for her amazing wardrobe collection in A Slave to Fashion, 1925

Bebe Daniels with an exotic animal, 1927

1920s icon Gilda Gray looking very glamorous

1920s girl with monocle

1920s style

Early 20th Century Photos of Iconic French Designer Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel

Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel (1883 – 1971) was a French fashion designer and founder of the Chanel brand. She is the only fashion designer listed on Time magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century. Along with Paul Poiret, Chanel was credited with liberating women from the constraints of the “corseted silhouette” and popularizing the acceptance of a sportive, casual chic as the feminine standard in the post-World War I era. A prolific fashion creator, Chanel’s influence extended beyond couture clothing. Her design aesthetic was realized in jewelry, handbags, and fragrance. Her signature scent, Chanel No. 5, has become an iconic product.

Chanel was known for her lifelong determination, ambition, and energy which she applied to her professional and social life. She achieved both success as a businesswoman and social prominence thanks to the connections she made through her work. These included many artists and craftspeople to whom she became a patron. However, Chanel’s life choices generated controversy, particularly her behaviour during the German occupation of France in World War II.

Coco Chanel via

Coco Chanel à Moulins, 1903 via

Gabrielle Chanel, Deauville, 1913 via

Coco Chanel via

Salvador Dalí and Coco Chanel via

Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel 1931 via