After the end of World War II, everything was in ruins. The advent of televisions, the booming shopping malls, and the imagination of space and future life have soothed people's hearts and brought new creative inspiration to the fashion world. The geniuses Cristóbal Balenciaga and Pierre Cardin emerged, and more diverse creative styles began to emerge.
In 1997, the Fendi Baguette was officially unveiled. It was the time of the "Sex and the City" hit, and the main character Kelly Brayshaw was the bag at the time, and she shouted "It's not a bag, it's a baguette" when she was robbed." This line made Fendi Baguette even more deeply rooted in people's hearts. Since then, this small and convenient bag has quickly become a favorite of women, and as the original "It Bag" has been popular to this day.
But few people realize that as early as the 1950s, there was such an "It Bag" era. At the time, Chanel, Hermès and Louis Vuitton were on three feet, vying fiercely for the title of accessories king.
Grace. Princess Kelly with Philadelphia surgeon James Lehman, 1959
In February 1955, Chanel introduced the 2.55 handbag. A year later, Grace of Monaco. Princess Kelly was photographed travelling with hermès Sac à Dépêches bag, which the brand quickly renamed Kelly. Louis Vuitton is known for his bags. In 1959, the brand began printing Monogram vintage flowers on handbags, purses, and other leather goods.
The advent of television in the fifties provided comfort to the American people after the war. The clothing styles that appear in TV shows have also brought new inspiration to people's fashion life.
In January 1950, the overcoat style worn by tv hosts appeared in front of people for the first time. Later that year, WWD also reported on other emerging casual styles, such as padded underwear worn while watching TV, underwear specially designed for children sitting on the floor watching TV, and so on.
In April 1950, costume designer Paul du Pont provided a dress code for readers who wanted to still look bright in black and white photography. In an interview with WWD, he said, "A lot of times a $19.95 dress shoots better than a custom dress. Loose green clothes are the most like black in the shooting, while light blue and yellow are the closest to white. I don't like the low-cut neckline very much because it would be distracting. ”
Stills from I Love Lucy, 1956
Lucille Ball is considered a fashion trailblazer outside the world of comedy. The red-haired star, who starred in the hit TV series I Love Lucy, teamed up with Suzy Boutique to develop the iconic sweater and shirt line. In 1952, WWD ran this series of advertisements. In 1955, WWD published a photo of actress Dinah Shore playing tennis in a dress. In 1956, a photo of actress Rosemary Clooney in maternity clothes was also published on the WWD cover. In the same year, American politician Davy Crockett introduced people to raccoon fur hats with the help of movies and TV shows, setting off a mini fashion trend.
At the time, WWD also reported on an audience called "The Lawrence Welk Show." A competition in which singers design dresses. For the American people, who were trying to heal the psychological wounds of war at the time, novelties such as television and variety shows were the most popular pastime.
In the spring of 1950, the nation's first suburban shopping center was completed in Seattle.
As more and more consumers began flocking to suburban shopping malls, free parking was introduced in the downtown shopping district in 1955 in hopes of attracting customers back. The WWD reported on the phenomenon and published a front-page article in 1951 titled "Turning Main Street into a Tree-Lined Shopping Mall." At the same time, WWD also reported on how some stores are facilitating shopping moms by introducing babysitting services. In December 1955, a picture of Toy Town, a shopping mall in Seattle, appeared on the front page of WWD.
Shopping mall in Bloomington, MINNESOTA, USA
In 1956, the Austrian architect Victor Gruen, known as the "father of shopping malls", pioneered the construction of the nation's first enclosed shopping mall, bringing outdoor fun indoors. In May 1958, WWD detailed his plans to build america's first skyscraper shopping center in New Rochelle—the 24-story building had a 225,000-square-foot Macy's department store on one floor.
The success of suburban shopping malls has led to a trend in the urban population to shift to the suburbs. In June 1960, WWD observed this trend and published an article titled "Early Census Data Expanding into suburbs." Thirty years later, hundreds of shopping malls have emerged, and "shopping as entertainment" and "multi-purpose mega shopping malls" have become frequently mentioned concepts in WWD articles.
In 1947, Mr. Christian Dior unveiled the "New Look" silhouette that accentuated the female figure, opening a new decade of basic design. As a result, the masculine trend of women's dress brought about by wartime material crunch came to an end, and the sexy, plump hourglass figure became popular again.
Stills by Jane Mansfield in The Girl Can't Help It, 1956
On March 8, 1957, WWD wrote in an article: "Under the influence of this trend, Dior introduced garter belts that could "lift the buttocks" to make the body more beautiful. On March 21, WWD reported that Emilio Pucci's Viva garter belt "lifts and tightens the hips."
Because of this, the idols of this era— Marilyn Monroe, Jane Russell, Gina Laurobrigida, Jane Mansfield, and so on—were all plump beauties.
"The fashion world lives on his ideas." On July 9, 1958, John B. Fairchild wrote in an article about Cristóbal Balenciaga published by WWD.
Balenciaga，1951
Nearly 70 years later, this statement is still convincing. Cocoon coats, balloon jackets, shirts... In terms of silhouettes alone, Balenciaga's contribution to the fashion industry is numerous.
Cristóbal Balenciaga, known as the "Architect of Fashion", is a master of tailoring and construction, and his designs are calm and precise. In 1962, WWD wrote, "His almost incredible perfection frustrated the tailors. Changes to the dresses in the hours leading up to the fashion show were frequent, with he tearing open his sleeves or cutting the seams, while the tailors stood by in this eerie silence. These tailors may have been frightened by his aura, but they were also inspired. Hubert de Givenchy, Oscar de la Renta, Emanuel Ungaro, and André Courrèges are all design gurus who grew up spurred on by Balenciaga.
For the first fifty years of its existence, WWD documented every mood and nuance of fashion through stylized illustrations on its layouts. At that time, illustrators would travel to the Paris Fashion Show (photographers were not allowed at the time) to record the most stunning runway moments for WWD and other fashion magazines with paintbrushes.
The most famous illustrators of the first half of the 20th century were Eric, George Barbier, Erté, George Lepape, Marcel Vertés, René Bouet-Willaumez, Christian Bérard, René Bouché, Tod Draz and René Gruau. In the second half of the 20th century, artists such as Antonio Lopez, Kenneth Paul Block, Mats Gustafson, Steven Stipelman, Joe Eula and Michaele Vollbracht painted highly stylized illustrations.
Steven Meisel's illustration for WWD
In the 1980s, the market environment became more complex, and advertising campaigns began to be as highly anticipated as illustrations in magazines. These widely disseminated works have given excellent photographers the same reputation and status as designers. At the time, photographers could earn $70,000 to $130,000 a day (excluding royalties). During that time, Mario Sorrenti, Juergen Teller, Herb Ritts, Patrick Demarchelier, Craig McDean, Corinne Day, Ellen von Unwerth, Steven Klein, Paulo Roversi, Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin And other photography masters filmed and produced avant-garde advertising blockbusters, adding more emotional connections to product marketing.
In the 1990s, photographers were criticized for their overly liberal style of work. In the 21st century, advances in technology have brought digital photography, smartphones, and instant image transmission into people's lives, dramatically changing the way photographers and editors work.
It can be said that Pierre Cardin was the first designer to establish a product licensing marketing model. The self-taught designer from a Venetian farmhouse has not only won the Golden Thimble Award, the highest honor of French fashion design, three times, but has also been called the last monument of French haute couture by the fashion industry.
In 1945, the 23-year-old Pierre Cardin joined the Pacan Women's Fashion House in Paris, which specialized in the production of costumes for the theater. In 1946, he designed costumes for the avant-garde film Beauty and the Beast, with which he became famous. Later, Pierre Cardin moved to Dior Studio as An assistant to Mr. Dior, who was once considered the successor to the Dior brand. Pierre Cardin said goodbye to Christian Dior in 1949 and founded his eponymous brand in 1950.
Children showing Pierre Cardin children's clothing, 1967
Pierre Cardin, who was not from an aristocratic background and had experienced the turmoil and depression of the war, always hoped that the general public could also wear a full sense of design. In 1966, WWD reported that he had left the Paris Haute Couture Guild to enter the ready-to-wear world. In the same year, Pierre Cardin conducted a catwalk in New York, entered the Soviet Union, Japan and other markets through product licensing, and sold more than 800 product licenses from children's clothing, perfumes, tableware, household items to luggage.
By the early 1980s, Pierre Cardin, who was booming in the mass market, was no longer considered a haute couture brand due to the dilution of brand value. One might think he didn't pay off, but he had to admit that Pierre Cardin actually opened up new ways for designers to make money. In 2011, Pierre Cardin, 88, who is still active on the front line, told WWD: "I want to tell young people that Pierre Cardin is still avant-garde and that my designs are completely original. ”
In the middle of the 20th century, after the end of World War II, the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union began. After the United States announced plans to launch sputniks in 1955, space became a competitive arena for the two superpowers. At the same time, this "space race" and the expectation and imagination of the future have also provided designers with new design inspiration.
In 1964, Balenciaga's former assistant, André Courrèges, launched the Space Age collection, which shocked the industry with a highly tidy futuristic aesthetic. A comprehensive understanding of the pragmatism of architectural design, skilled tailoring skills learned from Balenciaga, and a tendency to mod herself have allowed the visionary womenswear designer to create a lively, playful and free new female figure.
Paco Rabanne 与 Julie Harris
Costumes in the Casino Royale film are being discussed, 1966
The space and futurism trend also brought Mary Quant's miniskirt and Paco Rabanne's experimental avant-garde material clothing to the fashion world.
On November 28, 1966, writer Truman Capote orchestrated a Black and White Ball to celebrate the publication of his new book. To this day, this American social event known as the "Party of the Century" is still unforgettable. A few weeks before the ball, Truman Capote told WWD, "I felt so confused that I fell into a pack of piranhas." ”
Truman Capote
On a rainy autumn afternoon, 540 socialites in Manhattan received beautiful ball invitations. The invitees were ecstatic, and the celebrities who did not appear on the invitation list sought a way to enter the ball. Truman reportedly rejected numerous applications, including Southern literary writer Carson McCullers.
Gloria Guinness at the ball
Gloria Guinness、Jacob Javits、Henry Fonda、Lauren Bacall、Norman Mailer...... Celebrities from all walks of life wore masks to participate in the carnival. Truman Capote famously left a quote at the feast: "I just wanted to throw a party for my friends." ”
Jacqueline Kennedy is the most elegant and tasteful First Lady in the hearts of the American people, and people know how passionate she is about fashion. As designer Bob Bugnand told WWD, "She fell in love with a new coat, insisted on wearing it right away, and was so desperate that the hem of the dress was too dirty to change, so she immediately left for London." WWD published this early story in July 1960 and continued to keep up close to Jacqueline's fashion dynamics.
Jacqueline Kennedy, 1968
In late 1960, John F. Kennedy defeated Nixon by a narrow margin to become the 35th president of the United States, and Jacqueline became the youngest first lady in American history. She never hid her fashion tastes, and with her well-tailored suits, round top hats, low heels and pearl necklaces in her wardrobe, she quickly became a fashion icon in people's hearts.
Later, she became the wife of Aristotle Onassis, whom the WWD called Jackie O and her husband Daddy O. After they got married, Jackie O's dress style was still sought after by the public, and the paparazzi frenzy never subsided. Her Hermès scarf, Gucci bag and notoriously large black ultra sunglasses will always be so fashionable, with oversized sunglasses led by Jackie O that continue to this day. (To be continued) WWD
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Image source WWD 100th anniversary special issue, network