The fashion world gasped in unison when Grace Coddington announced in January this year that she was stepping down from her integral role at American Vogue, which she had held for 28 years. Since taking up the position of Creative Director at the style bible in July 1988, Welsh-born Coddington has created some of the most iconic fashion shoots from the past four decades, collaborating with the industry's biggest names.
Coddington is undoubtedly one of fashion's most beloved visionaries thanks to her vivid imagination and unwavering commitment, encapsulated and made public in her standout role in 2009's The September Issue. The remarkable 75-year-old is also adored for her own simple, chic personal style and fiery mass of hair. Oh, and her cat obsession.
Coddington's decision to step back from Vogue, now serving as Creative Director at Large, has finally given her more time to focus on personal projects including the launch of her first fragrance in collaboration with Comme des Garçons.
Now, following on from the success of 2015's Grace: Thirty Years of Fashion at Vogue, this autumn Phaidon will publish Grace: The American Vogue Years, a visual celebration of some of Coddington's most memorable shoots. The eagerly-awaited tome features nearly 300 images, shot by 17 of the leading fashion photographers who Coddington has worked with since 2002, from Steven Meisel, Annie Leibovitz, Bruce Weber, David Sims, Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott, Craig McDean, and Steven Klein, to newer talents like Jamie Hawkesworth and Karim Sadli.
The beautiful book begins with a foreword by Oscar-nominated actress Saoirse Ronan and an introduction by Annie Leibovitz. Michael Roberts, former Fashion Editor at Vanity Fair and The New Yorker, co-art directed the book with Coddington, designed the cover, and contributed an essay. Alongside the spectacular images, Coddington provides personal stories behind the sumptuous shoots and shares anecdotes about working with the world’s biggest photographers, models, artists, actors, and celebrities.
Ahead we preview some of our favourite images from the upcoming book.
Grace: The American Vogue Years by Grace Coddington is available now through Phaidon.
Shot by Mert and Marcus for the December 2015 issue of American Vogue, Kendall Jenner starred in a fashion story entitled 'wonder.land', celebrating the season's most fantastical looks. Here Kendall (as Alice) wears full look Louis Vuitton accompanied by the White Rabbit.
Mert Alas & Marcus Piggott. Kendall Jenner in Louis Vuitton and cast of wonder.land (costumes designed by Katrina Lindsay); hair, Shay Ashual; makeup, Lisa Eldridge; set design, Andrew Tomlinson; London, December 2015.Courtesy The Condé Nast Publications (pages 246-7).
For the June 2013 issue of American Vogue, photographer Peter Lindbergh, Coddington and Brit model Edie Campbell headed to Morocco. In this epic shot, Campbell wears Saint Laurent in the middle of the desert.
Peter Lindbergh. Edie Campbell in Saint Laurent; hair, Jimmy Paul; makeup, Stéphane Marais; Morocco, June 2013.Courtesy The Condé Nast Publications (pages 112-3).
In this fashion story for the November 2003 issue, entitled 'American Splendour', supermodel Karen Elson (here wearing Dolce & Gabbana) and Elise Crombez embody Fitzgeraldian '20s glamour, shot by Arthur Elgort in Long Island.
This particular image was accompanied by a quote from Tender Is The Night: '[She] who had magic in her pink palms and her cheeks lit to a lovely flame, like the thrilling flush of children after their cold baths in the evening.'
Arthur Elgort. Karen Elson in Dolce & Gabbana and male model in Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton; hair, Didier Malige; makeup, Gucci Westman; set design, Mary Howard; New York, November 2003.Courtesy The Condé Nast Publications (pages 194-5).
For this story in the July 2010 issue of American Vogue, model Natalia Vodianova and actor Ewan McGregor portray a 1950s married couple, with cracks beneath the surface. Styled of course by Grace Coddington, the cinematic shoot was captured by Peter Lindbergh and gave a first look at the AW10 collections. Here Natalia wears a Marc Jacobs gown while Ewan McGregor wears Dior Homme.
Peter Lindbergh. Natalia Vodianova in Marc Jacobs) and Ewan McGregor in Dior Homme; hair, Didier Malige; makeup, Stéphane Marais; production design, Colin Donahue; New York, July 2010.Courtesy The Condé Nast Publications (pages 94-5).
Keira Knightley made her debut in American Vogue in 2003, and landed her first cover for the December 2005 issue. Since then she has covered the magazine another four times but one of our favourite shoots is this one from June 2007 in which the Brit actress embarks on a Kenyan adventure, making an elephant friend.
Arthur Elgort. Keira Knightley in Comme des Garçons; hair, Didier Malige; makeup, Aaron de Mey at Streeters; set design, Chris Payne and Emma Campbell of Interior IDEA Kenya; Kenya, June 2007.Courtesy The Condé Nast Publications (pages 212-3).
In the 14-page Little Red Riding Hood inspired story by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott, named 'Into the Woods' for the September 2009 issue, Natalia Vodianova takes the lead in an array of scarlet gowns from Chanel, Moschino and Prada. Here she wears Ann Demeulemeester while the wolf wears Tom Ford.
Mert Alas & Marcus Piggott. Natalia Vodianova in Ann Demeulemeester, and wolf in Tom Ford; hair and wolf mask, Julien d’Ys; makeup, Charlotte Tilbury at Management Artists Organization, using Myface Cosmetics; United Kingdom, September 2009.Courtesy The Condé Nast Publications (pages 234-5).
This shoot by Tim Walker for the May 2014 issue was inspired by a 1948 photograph by Cecil Beaton of models wearing satin dresses by Charles James and came out in anticipation of the Costume Institute's retrospective exhibition on the designer.
The models Grace Mahary, Maja Salamon, Ola Rudnicka, Codie Young, Esmeralda Seay-Rynolds, Nastya Sten, Sasha Luss, Alexandra Kivimaki, Alice Cornish and Fei Fei Sun all wear paper dresses and jewellery by Rhea Thierstein.
Tim Walker. Maja Salamon, Ola Rudnicka, Codie Young, Esmerelda Seay- Reynolds, Nastya Sten, Sasha Luss, Alexandra Kivimäki, and Alice Cornish in paper dresses and jewelry created by Rhea Thierstein; hair, Julien d’Ys; makeup, Lucia Pieroni; production design, Rhea Thierstein; London, May 2014.Courtesy The Condé Nast Publications (pages 336-7).
In 2012 the Ritz Paris shut its famous doors for years of renovation but just before the luxury hotel closed for business, American Vogue captured Kate Moss there, wearing the latest couture collections.
Here Kate lounges in the palatial setting wearing Alexander McQueen and a headpiece by Julien d’Ys, shot by Tim Walker.
Tim Walker. Kate Moss in Alexander McQueen; headpiece, Julien d’Ys); hair, Julien d’Ys; makeup, Stéphane Marais; set design, Andy Hillman; Paris, April 2012.Courtesy The Condé Nast Publications (pages 330-1).
Grace: The American Vogue Years by Grace Coddington is published by Phaidon September 5th 2016.
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