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Carl Erickson Fashion Illustration

Sharon — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 22:40:52 +0000

Carl Erickson (1891 – 1958) was an American fashion and advertising illustrator from the 1910s through to the 1940s. At the peak of his career, he signed his work “Eric” and was known by this name. He worked a great deal for Vogue in the 1930s and 40s. He had a reputation for being obsessively hardworking. He only ever sketched from live models. For each illustration that appeared in a magazine, he had made dozens of studies. And he was known for bringing his sketchbook with him everywhere he went – to the restaurant, to the theatre – and capturing the elegance he saw around him.

Crystal Renn by Sebastian Kim for Vogue Germany October 2011

Sharon — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 05:48:56 +0000

As Karen Turman once said to me, “The 80s is the 40s on crack.”

Kat Hessen by Alexander Neumann for Vogue Mexico October 2011

Sharon — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 05:24:34 +0000

Fantasy Island: Alina Baikova by Nicole Bentley for Vogue Australia November 2011

Sharon — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 05:21:35 +0000

Polka Dot Trench

Sharon — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 18:47:35 +0000

From an editorial shot by Patrick Demarchelier for the US Vogue February edition, entitled “Love in the Trenches”. A kind of silly-nice idea, really. It is models with their real-life sweethearts, shot wearing trench coats from the Spring collections. Wasn’t too fond of the other shots, but I do like Aminata Niaria in this polka dot trench – a nice twist on the classic. Cute shoes, and the touch of red lippie too, a very nice clean look overall.

Via The Simply Luxurious Life

Galliano’s Inspiration for Christian Dior Couture Spring 2011 Collection: René Gruau

Sharon — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 00:32:31 +0000

René Gruau was a fashion illustrator, most famous for his work in the 1940s and 1950s. He walked away from his father’s aristocratic heritage (his father was an Italian count), to pursue an artistic career in Paris in the twenties. As an illustrator his work was first published when he was only 14 years old, in the mid-1920s. He illustrated throughout the 1920s and 1930s, but during the Second World War, work was harder to find for artists, which is what led Gruau to illustrate for lesser known designers, including the then lesser-known Christian Dior. He became artistic director for advertising for Christian Dior in 1947. Gruau and Dior worked together to shape and market the New Look, and became close friends, hence why Gruau is most often associated with the house of Dior.

He didn’t only illustrate for Dior however, but for other designers and fashion houses including Pierre Balmain, Jacques Fath, Balenciaga, Elsa Schiaparelli, Rochas, Lanvin, Elizabeth Arden, and Hubert de Givenchy, and for many magazines including Marie-Claire, Femina, Elle, Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Flair, L’Officiel and Madame Figaro, not to mention those illustrations for The Moulin Rouge and Lido in Paris that you may recognise.

His illustrations shaped the path of Haute Couture, and influenced fashion itself, in a true life-imitating-art-imitating-life way. For me Gruau’s women are glamour and high-society, femininity and sensuality. When I see his illustrations I think of Paris, I think of Vogue, I think of champagne and the Moulin Rouge, and the French Riviera, of perfume and red lipstick. Gruau died at the age of 95 in 2004 – so recently! *sigh*

Visit the official Rene Gruau website here.

Madisyn Ritland in German Vogue January 2010

Sharon — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 01:58:47 +0000

A forties/fifties blend with softly curled hair and a classic red pout. Lovely…

Ali Stephens in Vogue China January 2009

Sharon — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 17:13:09 +0000

Inga Eiriksdottir in Vogue Russia, March 2010

Sharon — Sun, 09 Jan 2011 00:56:30 +0000

That’s quite a beehive, Inga…

Tao Okamoto in Vogue Nippon’s November 2009

Sharon — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 12:18:54 +0000