On January 18th, the world lost a giant, a pioneer, a giant. André Leon Talley, fashion journalist, creative pioneer, and former editor-in-chief of Vogue, has died at the age of 73 from a heart attack. Known for her billowing caftans and capes and as a larger-than-life figure, Talley toiled in the realm of chiffon (appropriately titled her memoir) and inspired generations of Black creators, designers, and writers. paved the way for
A native of Durham, North Carolina, Talley was raised by his grandmother, his first muse, who worked as a maid on Duke University’s West Campus. Despite the stones thrown at him by students at Duke University and the rampant racial violence of the Jim Crow South, Talley defied the odds and went from the halls of North Carolina Central University to the runways of Paris and beyond. It expanded to include a magazine empire in New York.
In 1975, Talley became Paris bureau chief for Women’s Wear Daily. In the early 1980s, he was editor of New York City-based Ebony magazine, a role that would make “every church family, every aunt and cousin proud,” he wrote in The Chiffon Trench. are. From 1983 to 2013, Talley poured his heart and soul into his beloved magazine, Vogue, but as he writes in his memoir, Vogue didn’t always love him back. . He was Vogue’s first black creative director and remains the highest-ranking black person on Vogue’s U.S. masthead to this day.
Andre Leon Talley and Marina Schiano, New York City, circa 1980.
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No matter how high he soars, he cites the style of his community, Durham’s black churchgoers, as a means of propelling himself, defining his exceptional taste, and evolving the industry. I did.
“I never separated myself from being black,” he told Essence magazine in a 2020 interview. “My blackness is what made me.”
His death left an irreplaceable void in the industry, but a legacy we should all look back on and learn from.
From Pulitzer Prize winner Robin Givan to Black Fashion Fair founder Antoine Gregory, HuffPost spoke to several Black fashion leaders about what Tally means to them personally. Because of his Blackness, many people were able to say, “Because of Tully, I can do this.”
Robin Givan, Pulitzer Prize-winning fashion editor, author, and Washington Post senior critic
He made it clear that trying to put people into boxes is impossible and almost dangerous. What you think they are, or what you think they know, will continue to surprise you if you give them a chance. When Andre first entered the fashion world, I think there were a lot of preconceptions about what to expect from this tall, lanky black man from the South. I think he exceeded all those expectations.
Because of his uniqueness, his perspective was unusual. He brings a background as a Southerner, having attended his undergraduate studies at a historically black college and then earned a master’s degree from Brown University, and has an incredibly extensive knowledge of European history and the French language, making him a truly multi-layered I looked at fashion through a lens. Its informality. It brought the black church, it brought the dignity of his grandmother, it brought European traditions, it brought his adopted home of New York, it brought the idea of American sportswear. He was also able to expand the concept of beauty and nobility not just in the sense of nobility, but in a broader sense. I’ve always been fascinated by how he can get excited about arcane corners of French history, and equally excited about young people he comes across and judges to have impeccable manners. I was there.
He was very tough and very honest. He had no patience with people who felt they owed him something or felt that they were inferior to a certain job. He was very enthusiastic about getting his foot in the door, doing the heavy lifting, and getting ready. That was particularly shocking. I’ve always joked that he could be incredibly sensitive, arrogant, and bossy, but when he decides to admire your work or your tenacity, he’s at the door. , which opened the door to generosity. And he could really flood the dome with it.
So many people talk about Andre’s extraordinary personality and his huge presence in the fashion scene. But one of the things I found most appealing about him was his genuine humanity and kindness and the way he dealt with his flaws. I think that was part of what drew people to him and created his appeal. He had some very lasting friendships.
Andre Leon Talley and Anna Wintour attended the front row of Diane von Furstenberg’s fall 2006 fashion show at the Bryant Park tent on February 5, 2006 in New York.
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Victor Qunnuell Vaughns Jr., Ebony Media Style Editor
Andre walked where many of us could run. Like many of us, his career began with an unpaid apprenticeship, and once he completed that job, his career took off. We often forget that our fashion heroes have similar beginning stories to our own. Andre’s legacy is proof that you don’t have to come from a wealthy family to have a prestigious last name. Hard work and dedication will lead you to your dream job.
Shelton Boyd Griffith, Fashion & Culture Writer
Like many other Black fashion creators and editors in the industry, I am grateful to Andre for breaking the glass ceiling and making room for me to even fulfill my dream of working in fashion. I got my first Vogue when I was 11 years old. Seeing him, a black man who looks just like me, and reading his columns taught me and gave me a blueprint for what is possible. Andre truly lived a life of grandeur and beauty. That’s something I always try to carry with me in everything I do. The way he talked about fashion, culturally critiqued the zeitgeist, and gave prose to the way we see and interact with clothes is a special talent that we will unfortunately never see again. is.
Shelby Ivy Christie, fashion and costume historian
As a fellow North Carolinian, an HBCU graduate, and a Black man who worked at Vogue, I have the utmost respect for Andre Leon Talley. Any person who is black and does any work in the fashion industry is there because of what Andre Leon Talley did, whether it’s obvious to us or not. , regardless of how we see it, it’s no exaggeration to say so. That’s definitely the path he paved. It was just important to see someone like him. Even recently, I feel like this is the most people I’ve seen in this industry who didn’t go to art school in New York. Traditionally it’s a truck. He didn’t go to design school. He didn’t even go to fashion school.
So it was very important to me as a kid to see someone who was Black from North Carolina, who took up such a big space and had such an impact, graduate from an HBCU. I felt that if he could do it, I could too. It has to be respected that he did it in the 60’s and 70’s. His knowledge of history and fashion is really broad and extensive, which of course as a historian I really respect and love. He knew a lot about it because he was there when it happened. Because he spoke directly with Oscar de la Renta, he knows that Oscar de la Renta went to Balenciaga to gain experience and picked up a pin from the floor of Cristóbal Balenciaga’s atelier. As a historian, it’s really amazing that he lived through so much of that history.
His writing was beautiful and his diction was very expansive, adding so much color and personality to his fashion reports. Before that, it might have been very formal and obvious, but he came along and made it very colorful and fun and approachable. I think he’s done a lot to make it accessible for his demographic to follow and understand. He was still improving his storytelling, but he was doing it in a way that was interesting to us. That would leave a very large gap. I wish the industry had treated him better. He deserves so much more.
Andre Leon Talley attends the Blue Jacket Fashion Show in support of the Prostate Cancer Foundation on February 5, 2020 in New York City.
Craig Barritt/Getty Images
Antoine Gregory, fashion consultant, stylist, founder of Black Fashion Fair
Andre Leon Talley was an extraordinary icon. He was my fashion icon. For a long time he was my only reference point. Being black, being flashy, being hip. Without his contributions to an industry that we rarely see, I wouldn’t be where I am today.
Scarlett Newman, fashion writer
When I was young and dreamed of becoming a fashion journalist, Andre Leon Talley was my North Star. Once my mother got carried away with these dreams I had, she made sure I understood who Andre was. At the time, as far as I knew, no black person had held such an ambitious title in a fashion magazine or fashion house. I was very impressed by his dignity and authority when it came to clothes, and beyond that, his way of communicating. He made it fun and made it seem like one of God’s great creative contributions. If Andre hadn’t forged that path, black fashion journalists wouldn’t exist today with as much autonomy for different perspectives. We are not limited by black fashion norms. This means that a broader range of perspectives is increasingly required across all sectors of the industry. His accomplishments mean that I, a poor black girl from North Carolina with no ties to the industry and writing for the biggest fashion magazine in the world, can be here talking to you today.
Greg Emanuel, Style, Beauty and Culture Journalist
Meeting André Leon Talley at a young age opened the door to new and exciting possibilities. His style and presence in the fashion industry proved that there is room for young professionals like me. This proved that the luxury goods industry is not exclusive to people from privileged backgrounds, and that gaining knowledge and real skills can get you in the door. Andre’s legacy is a constant reminder of how curiosity, thirst for knowledge, urge to make a genuine positive impact, and determination can make your worth undeniable.
Andre Leon Talley speaks during the “Gospel According to Andre” Q&A at the 21st Annual SCAD Savannah Film Festival on November 2, 2018 in Savannah, Georgia.
Justin Fenner, Robb Report Senior Editor
I met Andre Leon Talley once and briefly at an event he hosted to commemorate Valentino’s interesting book, Valentino: The Emperor’s Table. This book is about keeping your dinner table healthy yet luxurious. What they say about Andre’s brilliant wit and effortless charm is true. He tells the assembled reporters and editors, most of us in our 20s and 30s, that someday our bodies will look like his and Mr. Garavani’s. I found a way. I can’t eat sugar or red meat anymore, and until then I probably won’t be able to fully appreciate this book.
But to me, that’s typical of what we’ve been hearing in the weeks since Andre passed away. His grandiose sayings and declarations, not to mention his caftans, made him seem far from the face of the earth, but in reality he could connect with anyone. Andre’s legacy as an outspoken black man in an industry dominated by people who don’t look like him will continue to be important, especially for me and other fashion and lifestyle journalists of color. Dew. If it weren’t for his vision, would I be here now? But just as important is the example he set for us all. He found a way to succeed despite his extravagant and eccentric personality, not in spite of it, but because of it. He is a true original, and in a time when so many people are influenced to wear, eat, think, say, and do the same things, that is an invaluable lesson.
