Beaton in Vogue by Josephine Ross

Cecil Beaton was a man of great style, dazzling charm and extraordinary talent whose entire professional life was intimately intertwined with the evolution of 'Vogue.' At twenty, Beaton sent 'Vogue' London editors a snapshot of an undergraduate play at Cambridge; just months before the death at 75, he completed for French 'Vogue' two marathon photo assignments. In the years between British, French and American 'Vogue' published Beaton's finest work - not only his famous photographs, but his writings, drawings, designs and paintings.Drawing from this wealth of material, 'Beaton in Vogue' captures the whole of this enormously versatile, energetic, and prolific man. Organized around 44 of Beaton's articles for the magazine, this book profiles his wit and accomplishment as a writer and stylish chronicler, including in such pieces as 'Palm Beachistory,' 'Remembrance of Things Proust,' 'The Age of Artifice' -- of high society, culture, and style.Beaton's wry line drawings complement his sharp verbal sketches of the London and New York social seasons; his set and costume designs accompany accounts of his personal involvement with the worlds of theater and ballet. Beaton's own words become commentary for his renowned photographs - the stunning fashion shots; the haunting wartime images; the portraits of the famous, from a demure young Princess Elizabeth and other royals at home to a playful Greta Garbo, from Gertrude Stein and associates in Paris to Audrey Hepburn wearing Beaton's costumes for 'My Fair Lady.'Finally, Beaton's ebullient paintings are reproduced here in full color, including the late work Beaton triumphantly executed with his left hand after a stroke paralyzed his right side.Josephine Ross selects and introduced work by Beaton dating form the 1920s to the 1970s.