![]() That charm made him a fan favorite during his appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show or his brief stint as a judge on America’s Next Top Model. The hint of a southern accent, affectation of old Hollywood ingénues, and touches of French made his every shout of “Saucy!” or “This is a look!” ring out with an air of familiar authority. His singular voice, however, could not be confined to the page. Over the course of his long career, his editorials became as bold as his looks for example, his 1996 Vanity Fair spread “Scarlett ’n the Hood” subversively starred Naomi Campbell as the Gone With the Wind protagonist. Talley’s blended style reflected his desire for a more heterogeneous fashion industry. He was a Black man, standing at 6-foot-6, the likes of which Paris had never seen.Īndre Leon Talley and Marina Schiano circa 1980 in New York City (Photo by PL Gould / IMAGES / Getty) His look was a medley of floor-length robes, tailor-made caftans, Russian ushankas, mauve alligator coats, snakeskin boots-all held together by the refined demeanor Talley had honed on the campus of North Carolina Central University, an HBCU, and the Ivy League Brown University. In his own outfits, Talley would mix that sacred glamour with the profane sensibilities of Studio 54, with its edgy silhouettes and hedonistic celebrity appeal. His style foundation was rooted in the Black church of racially segregated Durham, North Carolina, where, as a child, he had marveled at the women and men who strutted in their Sunday finery. ![]() In Paris, Talley continued to build the persona that would eventually win over readers and designers alike. Having studied French language and literature, he found a home there, even when his European counterparts were less welcoming. Talley first gained widespread notice in 1978 as the Paris bureau chief of Women’s Wear Daily. In particular, it included his vision for a more democratic fashion world. But Talley’s influence stretched far past Vogue. From his hiring until he left Vogue, in 2013, Talley never forgot the Black readers who’d subscribed to Vogue because of him-and he kept on battling an institution that was often antagonistic to his changes. As the magazine’s first Black creative director, he infused its pages with models of deeper hues and with garments that referenced the African diaspora. Talley was indeed a pioneer at Vogue at a time when powerful African Americans in the industry were rare. Talley’s name is rarely spoken without a mention of Vogue, as if even being hired by the publication, which many view as the fashion bible, was his biggest accomplishment. ![]() By that time, he had spent years attempting to map a new American fashion genealogy-one that now extends to superstar Black designers of today such as LaQuan Smith, Mimi Plange, Kerby Jean-Raymond, and Christopher John Rogers, whom Talley presciently called “ the future” of fashion. ![]() In the late 1990s, he regularly championed Kevan Hall, Stephen Burrows, Willi Smith, and many others in his Vogue “StyleFax” column, firmly placing these emerging designers in the mainstream. André Leon Talley, who died on Tuesday at the age of 73, made the fashion world take notice of Black design genius.
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