Style Files

PHOTOGRAPH BY MILES ALDRIDGE
PHOTOGRAPH BY MILES ALDRIDGE

When The New Yorker published its very first fashion issue, in November of 1994, Adam Gopnik led off his Comment with a question: Why does fashion matter? One answer he gave, and we're inclined to agree with him, is that it’s simply fun. Fashion doesn’t necessarily have to be about something larger than itself, and the arbitrary pleasure one derives from it can often be its own reward. For this collection, which marks the publication of our thirty-sixth Style Issue, we’ve pulled together nine classic pieces on fashion, covering everything from the fashion world’s early influence on self-expression to the rise of style blogging.

In “31, Rue Cambon,” Janet Flanner describes how the Parisian designer Coco Chanel helped to liberate women from the corset and transformed global fashion. Lois Long’s “Feminine Fashions” explores the emergence of a distinct Hollywood style in the thirties, while Kennedy Fraser’s “The Fashionable Mind” examines the influence of fashion and consumerism on self-expression. Rebecca Mead’s “Precarious Beauty” details the outré style and sartorial flamboyance of the fashion muse Daphne Guinness. In “Tavi Says,” Lizzie Widdicombe chronicles the rise of fashion blogging and the expanding influence of the teen-age blogger Tavi Gevinson. Susan Orlean’s “Fantasyland” traces the inspiration for the exotic creations of the French designer Jean Paul Gaultier, while Janet Malcolm’s “Nobody’s Looking at You” considers the growing popularity of Eileen Fisher’s understated designs. “Sole Mate,” by Lauren Collins, follows the popular shoe designer Christian Louboutin as he creates his elaborate red-soled confections. Finally, in “Ask Betty,” Judith Thurman recounts the blunt wit and the sage advice of Bergdorf Goodman’s longtime personal shopper Betty Halbreich.

We hope you enjoy these pieces as much as we do—and that you’ll follow the magazine on Facebook and Twitter, where many of our contributors will also be recommending their favorite stories.