More than just a century of style

One enters the exhibition through a room with pillars that are kaleidoscopes of British Vogue magazine covers throughout the years, and is instantly transported to a magical world. The films at the end of the entrance corridor act to further set the scene and create that fantasy atmosphere which resonates throughout the show. The films contrast the iconicity of the covers with their whimsical and dreamy air.

Robin Muir, curator of the exhibition, points out that “since Vogue’s debut, photography has been its lifeblood”, and the centrality of photography to Vogue’s essence since its conception is wonderfully conveyed in the way the photographs are presented, as well as their content itself.

Those who’ve attended other fashion photography exhibits in London last year will instantly recognize works by Horst and Guy Bourdin in the ‘100 Years in Vogue’ gallery. Mario Testino’s photograph of Kate Moss in a corridor is also instantly recognizable by his signature photography style. Each photograph is labelled with the photographer’s name in the same way a painting is labelled with the name of the painter. With this approach the photographer is truly emphasized as an artist with regards to his or her role in and importance to Vogue.

All the photographs stand out from those seen in other magazines by how like works of art they are in themselves – how well the model, from make-up to clothes to the pose, fits the surroundings to evoke a specific emotion or convey a message. Overall each photograph is almost surreal – truly magical and fantastically beautiful. Each is also extremely unique; Vogue has a history of surprising readers with the unexpected and a dedication to taking no shortcuts in ensuring the authenticity of the beautiful world they create for their readers. For example, there are photographs of a model in Peru beside local residents by Mario Testino, and one which was shot by Tim Walker in Mongolia with the model sitting on a yak.

Vogue 100 takes its chance to “replay Vogue’s greatest hits” – iconic photographs that defined the magazine’s milestones. For example, Kate Moss’s first ever cover and story are instantly recognizable. Beside these are ‘hidden gems’ - rare original photographs from the 1920s and 1930s that are particularly precious. Some of these have never been displayed before, and it took Robin Muir five years to hunt them down from sources all over the world including private collectors, auction houses, and international art galleries. Not only are the pictures appreciated for their aesthetic beauty, but also because “some pictures just drip history”, and are representations of not only fashion’s history, but the world’s as a whole.

The pictures represent not only fashion’s history, but the world’s as a whole

This exhibition also shows Vogue as more than just a fashion magazine in emphasizing its promotion of and inspiration by the art world. In the ‘Century of Magazines’ gallery are Vogue editions that introduced readers to the drawings of Picasso and featured a story on Matisse. A photograph of Aldous Huxley is displayed in the 1920’s room; he was subeditor of Vogue and later its chief book reviewer!

The physical evolution of Vogue, displayed issue by issue in the ‘Century of Magazines’ gallery, is a captivating journey. These range from beautiful Art Deco-style hand-painted covers on bound copies to the glossy digitalized issues of today. But in addition to its physical evolution, Vogue 100 offers a comprehensive exploration of how the magazine responded to current fashion trends of each decade in addition to the changing times in society and world events.

This exhibition shows why British Vogue stands out from other fashion magazines in that it did not passively mirror trends, but invented, reinterpreted, and presented them in such a way as to stay true to the magazine’s vision. Each issue of Vogue remains a work of art in itself.

Throughout each decade, its readers opened Vogue to find more than just the latest news in fashion. On the very first page, Vogue promised that “really and truly, such amazing things are going to happen to you that you would never believe them, unless you saw them in Vogue”. Each issue provides a portal to another beautiful world with an air of magic and mystery contained between the covers. Vogue 100 successfully captures this wonderful world, leaving a lasting imprint of beauty on its viewers and, of course, an aesthetic inspiration to be utterly fashionable.

Vogue 100 is on at the National Portrait Gallery until 22nd May