The Love of my Life

Reflecting on what first inspired my passion for couture clothing and photography I have to revisit the mental recesses of my youth. Over the years, a series of images have been etched in my mind and created a deep and eternal love for all things fashion. From the pages of Vogue, Vanity Fair and Bazaar the great photographers of the last decades; Testino, Meisel, Leibowitz have all ignited what I am sure now is a lifelong love affair with this industry.

It is fascinating how I can recall with crystal clarity certain events surrounding the discovery of these images. How they seemed to jump from the shiny pages of the magazines into my heart where they were locked, never to escape or be forgotten. How I would carefully pull apart the magazine, gently extract the page embedded in it's gluey spine and transplant it onto the walls of my bedroom. How I would look with youthful pride and approval back at the sultry-faced models pouting at me from their new vantage point.

Recently, I have gone on a quest to re-find these images. When I do, a flood of memories comes with them. This Testino portrait of Princess Diana I found in a Bazaar many years ago and became the first of many favourites I collected. I had been dragged with my parents to a dinner party thrown by their incredibly fashionable friends. I had decided that they were fashionable for two reasons. Firstly, the hostess wore 5" Manolo Blahnik stilettos and cooked for 2 hours in them while entertaining a party of 20 and secondly, her husband kept a large black and white glamour photo of her wearing an ostrich feather embellished dress in his office on the credenza. Seeking reprive from the uptight chatter of the 'adults' by escaping to the loo after dinner, I found this among the spread of water closet reading material. I remember staring at Diana's demure expression and hoped that I might one day be as captivating as she.

The other image that cemented my love of fashion was a Versace ad campaign shot by Steven Meisel. I had painstakingly extracted both pages of the ad and had re-posted them on my wall right above my bed. I would adore the fur thrown lavishly on the car and the shadow the trees made on the lawn in the background. A friend had been over a few days after I had put it up. I remember his remark as he observed my cut and paste wall decorations. "I love your ads everywhere." He said. "You wouldn't be you without them." I wonder if he knew just how right he was.