field of dreams

Today I finally saw the September Issue with friends, and it was every bit as fun and frivolous as i hoped it would be! It's no Devil Wears Prada, even though the editors and writers of the script have clearly revelled in the drama and tension created by Anna Wintour/Miranda Priestly comparisons, but the Vogue offices are certainly no playground either. In fact, it's a little bit scary the awe and horror that Wintour manages to cause in her fellow colleagues on a daily basis. Watching these grown women and men cower before her was fascinating, if a little uncomfortable to watch. 

What was the most interesting, though, was to see Wintour in a different light. She's witty, very witty, with a sharp sense of humour that is incredibly British. Her interaction with Bee Schaffer provide some of the most touching moments of the film, there is unbridled mother devotion and adoration in her gaze, and her unrelenting desire to get Bee to enter into the world of fashion. I loved how Bee is resolutely against it, I have always dismissed her as a vacuous socialite and freeloading off her mother's success. But it is clear that she is both aware of this stereotype and willing to work hard against it. People automatically assume because she's young, pretty and thin she must want to follow in her mother's footsteps, but she's dedicated to the law (or she was in 2007, feel free to correct me if she's changed career paths since then, i know very little about her). She emerges as a real interesting character. 

And finally, most importantly, most incredibly, is Grace Coddington. A tour de force in the fashion industry, universally esteemed and respected, her insights into the world of styling, her thoughts about fashion and beauty and clothes and history are so eloquent and touching that it really did bring a tear to the eye. She is the real star of the film, so immensely talented and so incredibly passionate about her work, willing to stand up for what she believes in and fight for her shoots, despite opposition from all sides. And as the film develops you come to learn more about her relationship with Anna as well, the climax of the film revealing it to be a strong one indeed, despite everything. 

In celebration of Grace and her vision for fashion I've decided to show a few of her editorials over the next couple of weeks. Starting with this one, not a classic or deemed one of her most profound (i'm saving those for a little later) but nonetheless powerfully evocative of the magical dreamlike quality of fashion that she, and I, so adore. She is a romantic at heart, she says in the film, and so am I. Like I always say, i just want to be inspired. I just want to see beauty. When i write, i want to write about heart-beating life and all of its loveliness. I think we are very similar in that way. 

Field of Dreams

Photographer: Mario Testino

Model: Natalia Vodianova and Family (too cute!)

Stylist: Grace Coddington

tfs

don't you think that there is something both dream like and real, both magical and earthly, both fantasy and reality about this shoot? Like the fact that they're wearing pirate hats and converse shoes? It's just perfect, i think. 

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