THE BRIGHT SWIMMING SHELL

Four back-views,four back treatments of a single theme:

the California maillot by Cole of California; Mabs; Caltex; Catalina

The Bright Swimming Shell

Vogue June 1949

Photography: Clifford Coffin

"SUMMER SLEEP" IRVING PENN

summer sleep

"Summer Sleep" 

Photographic Study

Irving Penn

Vogue June 1949

FORTIES FASHION

Principessa Helen Wolkonsky

Donna Milagros del Drago in the Palazzo Rispoli ... Donna Marelia Caracciolo dei Principi de Castagneto ... Principessa Letizia Boncompagni Ludovisi


All four young ladies of Roman society gowned by Contessa Gabriella di Robilant

Wallace Simpson in Mainbocher

Christian Dior's tapered oval shoulder interpreted for America by Larry Aldrich - pearls by Coro

Maud et Nano's "Nursery Maid" hat

Ceil Chapman chiffon and Coro pearls

Veronica Lake in Castillo's long, close coat of dark satin photographed by Avedon




Harper's Bazaar July 1947
Photography: 
Louise Dahl-Wolfe
Richard Avedon

eyes on the forties at devodotcom

FABULOUS FORTIES FASHION

Day-with-the-grandson costume by Fred Greenberg - feather toque, long gloves, sables, cultured pearls.

Photography: Norman Parkinson

wrap it up!

Dior's mink fullness, sharply belted

Paris: The bulky coat

Desses' immense black fox, crossed stole collar; peaked velvet hat

Sheila-Lynn cape-collared coat dress ...Harold Rubin black fox muff, ropes of cultured pearls with ropes of pseudo pearls all by La Tausca

In The Plot: The Blonde Bag

by Nettie Rosenstein

The Beautiful Accessory: The Long Glove

The Devil's In The Details

Important dress; important colour - one of the deep definite reds that have helped build many a beauty's reputation as a beauty. Made to order in Couturier No. 525 photographed by Norman Parkinson at the Terrace Room, Hotel Plaza

Spectacular: The bold, bare, short evening dress with pailletted bodice, tulle tunic, vamp skirt. Worn with a hat and chandelier earrings. Jacques Fath, winner of the 1949 Neiman Marcus fashion award.

Paris

Long, a tradition - Balmain, Desses, Lanvin - pale and sweeping for a ball

The Ball Dress - Long and Blue

Vogue September 1949

Autumn Fashions

New York, Paris

the forties at devodotcom

MAN RAY - REMEMBRANCE DAY

Lest We Forget ...
In Remembrance - November 11, 2015

SUMMER 1947

The shoulder takes a curve
the long fitted body sweep, the typoical Dior box-pleated skirt.
bonnet - hattie carnegie
simulated pearls by miriam haskell
photo louise dahl-wolfe

thin white rayon dress by clare potter

the coolest dress in the world is chiffon by Ceil Chapman
coro simulated pearls
jerro sandals

Maud et Nano's "nursery maid" hat, a white Milan straw cloche, with crown and streamers of gray and white polka-dotted crepe.

black straw cloche, the short brim hung with lilacs to give the look of a wig of flowers.

made to order bergdorf goodman

"the dream" balthus

principessa helen wolkonsky

donna marella caracciolo dei Principi di castagneto

roman women are beautiful

photographs leslie gill

veronica lake

Oval shoulders, like those of an exquisite ming princess, trace a new line in Castillo's long, close coat of dark satin. It is worn by Veronica Lake, soon to star in Paramount's "Saigon".

Photograph Richard Avedon

Harper's Bazaar July 1947

WALKER EVANS: THE UNPOSED PORTRAIT

The crashing non-euphoria of New York subway life may someday be recorded by a modern Dickens or Daumier. The setting is a sociological gold mine awaiting a major artist. Meanwhile it can be the dream 'location' for any portrait photographer weary of the studio and of the horrors of vanity. Down in the swaying sweatbox he finds a parade of unselfconscious captive sitters, the selection of which is automatically destined by raw chance. 

The portraits on these pages were caught by a hidden camera, in the hands of a penitent spy and an apologetic voyeur. But the rude and impudent invasion involved has been carefully softened and partially mitigated by a planned passage of time. These pictures were made twenty years ago, and deliberately preserved from publication.

As it happens, you don't see among them the face of a judge or a senator or a bank president. What you do see is at once sobering, startling and obvious: these are the ladies and gentlemen of the jury.

Walker Evans

The guard is down and the mask is off: even more than when in lone bedrooms ( where there are mirrors ),  people's faces are in naked repose down in the subway.  To test and examine this special state, Walker Evans spent weeks underground,  strapped to a Leica.

His hunt there for true portraiture netted a sizeable stack of remarkable prints: eight are produced here.

Evans' most comprehensive book, 'American Photographs', appears next month in a new edition published by the Museum of Modern Art and Doubleday.




Walker Evans: The Unposed Portrait
Harper's Bazaar March 1962
Photography: Walker Evans

DOVIMA AND AVEDON - PARIS 1950

Fath's reversible red satin evening dress, flaring below the knee. The cape is in green - the reverse side of the satin - and held by two cufflike bands of mink

Dior's steel gray ottoman with taffeta panels in lighter grays

Chaumont's white tulle with bias skirt

Chaumont's silk sheath in olive satin

Balenciaga's gold-embroidered sheath, with a chiffon jacket

Gres's arum lily - white satin over lemon jersey
Fath's huge stole over beige faille
Gres's red faille showing white jersey in front
Balenciaga's satin basque, heavily jewelled, over pale pink tulle 

Balenciaga's white satin dress with a tight bodice embroidered with rubies and pearls.






The Evening Fashion at the Paris Openings
Harper's Bazaar September 1950
Photography: Richard Avedon
Model: Dovima

... eyes on the fifties at devodotcom