OUGD601: Diana Vreeland - The Eye Has to Travel

Continuing the theme of secondary research into fashion magazines and its editors, I decided to investigate "the first proper stylist" and editing icon, Diana Vreeland. 'The Eye has to Travel' (2011) is a biographical documentary about the life and work of Vreeland, produced & directed by her granddaughter, Lisa Immordino Vreeland.

The Eye Has to Travel shows archive footage of some of the most prolific fashion minds and photographers who have helped shape the industry into what it is today, as well as bringing the ideas of fantasy and expression into accepted culture.

Diana Vreeland was ahead of her time seeing fashion & photography as an art form. She is responsible for how fashion has been represented at the time, and influenced our memory of fashion over the 20th century. Born in Paris in 1910's, she helped Coco Chanel build up Maison de Chanel and become one of the largest high fashion brands in the world, as well as popularising the blue jean.
(Vreeland ran 6-7 articles on the Levis blue jean, then the trend exploded).

In the 1930's Coco Chanel had the spirit of the 20th century and saw how the world was going to be (she was very feminist).  Around this time Vreeland started the column 'Why Don't You...' for Harpers Bazaar inspired by Chanel's futuristic attitude. As this was during the war, where she outraged by suggesting excessive luxury things unable to physically do at the time due to the way the economy/world was during the war. In those days editing wasn't a thing so what she wrote was published word for word, yet you could see a very eccentric rhythm within the flow of the writing.

Then Europe entered WW2 and the bikini was born... naturally Vreeland reported it in Harpers Bazaar which was absolutely shocking at the time.

GIVE THEM WHAT THEY DON'T KNOW THEY WANT YET (first real taste-maker)

The Tale of Geryi 

First novel to ever be written by a woman. Vreeland took this narrative and re-enacted scenes in Vogue all over Japan where the novel was based, heightening the cultural awareness of magazines intellectually, as well as broadening the target audience to a more cultural/educated woman, unlike previous magazines who just tried to cater for everyone.

Vreeland & Fantasy

Vreeland has the taste for the beautiful and the extreme and was a true believer in Fantasy via Fashion.

Shot with Richard Avedon & helped make the most famous fashion photographers famous.

Invented the large budget shoot as she traveled the globe contacting designers to feature and shooting in far away exotic locations, all with the intention of creating a fantasy never before seen by the average American public.

Prior to this all magazines were about domestic products, targeted at housewives and intending to keep them there, yet Vreeland armed with Coco Chanel feminist values reinvented this magazine convention and started to empower society, especially the women in it.

The models HAD to be more than a clothing horse or beautiful, creating this idea of the modern woman who was more than just beauty. She turned them into queens. They had to have perfect skin, posture, nails, walk, good interests and an education. (did this contribute towards unhealthy aspiration goals for the 21st century woman?) HOWEVER, she was more interested with the personality of individuals than beauty standards, she often celebrated ugly and was a pioneer of rocking your faults,


Harpers Bazaar (where Vreeland was Fashion Editor)

H.B first to publish pictures of the Kennedys after inauguration due to how the magazine was positioned at the time- something Jacqui admired.

Started column 'Why Don't You' and introduced the aspect of fantasy into fashion photography.

"Americans don't have any taste" so she sold it to them.

She made it okay for women to be ambitious

Vogue (Editor in Chief, 1960's)

Job as editor was to give them something they can't get at home

Continued down the route of going O.T.T and put Vogue on the map as the key fashion magazine.

Vogue channeled change, subcultures and new wave fashion inspired by London in the 1960's. The magazine turned into a portal to channel the energy of the streets of London and the youth revolution to the world. This scene provided a whole new bunch of young fashion photographers to be given a platform, including David Bailey.

London in the 1960's had a vitality over the USA, you could wear what you wanted in London so Vreeland tried to bring this mentality overseas, making it okay and accepted to use fashion as a way of expression.

Influenced by music, youth, sexuality, black rights, celebrities and REVOLUTION (!!!)

Vreeland was very in touch with the streets, not just couture, so started to feature more aspects of realism wrapped up with a fantasy bow, making the mundane Vogue.

Personalities and celebrities became the focus of many issues, leading the celebrity/pop culture revolution

'The Eyes for Vogue' shot by Irvin Penn was a way to bring exotic locations to the reader and continue her passion from Harpers Bazaar. (3 weeks- 20 pages of content)

Vreeland & Celebrity

Vreeland helped create celebrities and models a like. She featured Molly on the cover who later became a Hollywood actress.

Vreeland invented subjective history


"Fashion to be a transformer... I want you to have your own wishes and views to transform yourself"- Diana Vreeland

"We live in an artificial time so whats the point in dwelling about reality?" - Diana Vreeland