Edited with text by Christopher Niquet. Preface by Steven Meisel.
In 2008, Christopher Niquet, then a respected French stylist, spotted the 1960s supermodel Peggy Moffitt in a Beverly Hills restaurant. Never previously an autograph chaser, he nonetheless felt compelled to ask for hers. This candid moment ignited an obsessive quest for the faces that changed fashion history. Niquet began to approach the models he considered quintessential figures in his industry. “My original purpose was to get beyond the abstract, incorporeal beauty of these icons, and bring back a sense of their physicality. For me, each signature restored a womanly reality to the imaginary being.” Through his collection of autographs, we explore a multi-layered history of feminine beauty, from Jean Shrimpton to Jerry Hall, from Lauren Bacall to Isabella Rossellini, from Anita Pallenberg to Naomi Campbell, muses for extraordinary fashion giants such as Steven Meisel (who writes the preface to this book), Karl Lagerfeld, Diana Vreeland and Richard Avedon.
Featured image - of Peggy Moffitt and her autograph - is reproduced from 'Models Matter.'
PRAISE AND REVIEWS
L'Oeil de la Photographie
[Models Matter] is cause for amazement, relief, and hope. These women deserve our recognition. They were all so unique, so talented, so passionate about their craft.
i-D Magazine
Sarah Moroz
Models Matter is a yearbook-style compendium of muses. Written entries about the greatest models of our time range from ruminative text to a few offhand sentences, accompanied by vintage photographs shot by greats from Avedon to Scavullo.
Departures
Niquet pays homage to the 20th century’s greatest beauties.
"It saddens me that so many voiceless faces from the Fifties to the late Eighties have faded into oblivion," Steven Meisel writes in the Preface to Christopher Niquet's new book combining photographs of historic fashion models and their autographs. "Until I met Christopher Niquet, I thought I was their only admirer, the only archivist of their stories. The fact that someone as young as Christopher cares about Susan Moncur's legacy is cause for amazement, relief and hope. These women deserve our recognition. They were all so unique, so talented, so passionate about their craft. How could I forget them?" Featured here, "ne plus ultra rock'n roll chick" Anita Pallenberg. continue to blog
FORMAT: Pbk, 8.75 x 11 in. / 120 pgs / 50 color / 20 b&w. LIST PRICE: U.S. $40.00 LIST PRICE: CANADA $54 ISBN: 9788862085199 PUBLISHER: Damiani AVAILABLE: 4/25/2017 DISTRIBUTION: D.A.P. RETAILER DISC: TRADE PUBLISHING STATUS: Out of print AVAILABILITY: Not available TERRITORY: NA LA
Published by Damiani. Edited with text by Christopher Niquet. Preface by Steven Meisel.
In 2008, Christopher Niquet, then a respected French stylist, spotted the 1960s supermodel Peggy Moffitt in a Beverly Hills restaurant. Never previously an autograph chaser, he nonetheless felt compelled to ask for hers. This candid moment ignited an obsessive quest for the faces that changed fashion history. Niquet began to approach the models he considered quintessential figures in his industry. “My original purpose was to get beyond the abstract, incorporeal beauty of these icons, and bring back a sense of their physicality. For me, each signature restored a womanly reality to the imaginary being.” Through his collection of autographs, we explore a multi-layered history of feminine beauty, from Jean Shrimpton to Jerry Hall, from Lauren Bacall to Isabella Rossellini, from Anita Pallenberg to Naomi Campbell, muses for extraordinary fashion giants such as Steven Meisel (who writes the preface to this book), Karl Lagerfeld, Diana Vreeland and Richard Avedon.
