One of only seven editors in chief in American Vogue’s history, Jessica Daves has remained one of fashion’s most enigmatic figures. Diana Vreeland’s direct predecessor in the role, it is Daves who first catapulted the magazine into modernity.
A testament to a changing America on every level, Daves’s Vogue was the first to embrace a “high/low” blend of fashion in its pages and to introduce world-renowned artists, literary greats, and cultural icons into every issue, offering the reader a complete vision of how design, interiors, architecture, entertaining, art, literature, and culture all connected and contributed to refining and defining taste and personal style. Daves profiled icons of American style, from John and Jackie Kennedy to Charles and Ray Eames, alongside Dior, Chanel, Givenchy, and Balenciaga creations.
Organized in multifaceted, thematic chapters, 1950s in Vogue features carefully curated photographs, illustrations, and page spreads from the Vogue archives (with iconic images as well as lesser-known wonders), and unpublished photographs and letters from Jessica Daves’s personal archives.
Revealing a fascinating and hitherto little-explored moment in Vogue history, 1950s in Vogue is a must-have reference for lovers of fashion, photography, and style.
Reviews
Traces the tidal shift at the essential magazine during the editorship of Jessica Daves, who not only featured fashion but also the cultural output of artists and literary figures, laying the groundwork for the brand that still thrives today.
— Los Angeles Times
Lavishly illustrated… shine[s] a spotlight on this editor and the magazine she edited… Daves contextualized fashion among advances in technology, design, and art.
— Vogue.com
Contributors
Rebecca C. Tuite
Author
Rebecca C. Tuite is a fashion historian and writer. She is a doctoral candidate at the Bard Graduate Center. She is the author of Seven Sisters Style: The All-American Preppy Look, which was featured in publications including the Wall Street Journal, Paris Vogue, and Vanity Fair.
