On With The Shows! My Front-Row Seat Witnessing The Evolution Of The Runway

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Growing up in the difficult Britain of the '70s (three-day working weeks, IRA bombings, my parents' divorce), I lost myself in the magic of early fashion. Thankfully, an extraordinary new immersive exhibition at London's Lightroom is re-creating that sense of wonder that I had all those years ago. " Vogue: Inventing the Runway," opening this fall, explores the history of the runway show with film and images from different periods (Gabrielle Chanel showing her latest creations in the '30s, the refinement of Christian Dior and Cristobal Balenciaga in the '40s and '50s, the edginess of John Galliano and Lee McQueen in the '90s, and on and on)—replete with stories of the guests in attendance, from socialites to the all-­important store buyers to the influencers and the celebrities of today's shows. From Lucile, Lady Duff Gordon, who wowed Belle Époque Britain (and France, and America) with her whimsical creations, shown only to the privileged few, to superstar designers whose work is seen globally—and whose shows have become pop cultural juggernauts embracing spectacle (Pharrell Williams's Louis Vuitton menswear, spring 2024), destination (Nicolas Ghesquière's Louis Vuitton in Rio, resort 2017), and beyond.

Gabrielle Chanel began her transformation of the fashion world a half-century later with shows that featured girls—in the early 1920s they were courtesans, with a certain superior look about them—descending the stairs and striding through Chanel's lavishly decorated Rue Cambon salons. From the first debut of the spring or autumn shows, clients would come flocking, with the show then presented at the same time every day for the next week or so. It was in the 1940s, however, that the fashion show first became a truly global phenomenon. Pierre Balmain, a blustery boy from the countryside, was the first behind-the-scenes designer to leave the house of Lucien Lelong and try to create a new one on his own. He did so in 1945, and his first collection was a triumph of femininity after the long war years: Gertrude Stein, sitting front row with her poodle, Basket, in tow, wrote a rapturous report in Vogue, her first and only fashion review.

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