Models Matter

Christopher Niquet, Steven Meisel

ISBN 10: 8862085192 / ISBN 13: 9788862085199

Published by Damiani, 2017

About this Item

In 2008, Christopher Niquet, a well-known French stylist, spotted the 1960s supermodel Peggy Moffit in a Beverly Hills restaurant. Never an autograph chaser, he nonetheless felt compelled to ask for hers. This candid moment ignited an obsessive, ongoing quest. Niquet began to reach out to the models he considered quintessentials figures in his industry, for their epic beauty and remote auras. Deploying a sleuth's methods to locate these models around the globe, he collected 100 signatures, most of which are framed along with an iconic portrait. "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." This book highlights the unique personalities of celebrated or forgotten women from the late 1950s to the 1990s and what they all have in common: the power to awaken creativity in the people who see them. Through generations of cover stories, Models That Matter explores a multi-layered history of feminine beauty, from Jean Shrimpton to Jerry Hall, from Lauren Bacall to Linda Evangelista, from Anita Pallenberg to Naomi Campbell, muses for extraordinary fashion lensmen like Steven Meisel-who wrote the preface-to Irving Penn or Richard Avedon.

Seller Inventory # 0074363

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Models Matter
• Publisher: Damiani
• Publication Date: 2017
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 8862085192
• ISBN 13: 9788862085199
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

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.

Review

Niquet pays homage to the 20th century’s greatest beauties. (Departures)

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. (Sarah Moroz i-D Magazine)

[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. (L'Oeil de la Photographie)