Joe Eula: Master of Twentieth Century Fashion Illustration

When Cathy Horyn, the brilliant, razor-sharp fashion critic at The New York Times, left her post earlier this year we mourned the loss of one of our favourite writers. Horyn is a terrific chronicler of the fashion world – incisive, witty and always on the money. And while she may not have been whipping out her reviews and columns at lightning speed since then, she has been working on other projects – and first up is a gorgeous book, Joe Eula: Master of Twentieth Century Fashion Illustration. He’s not as well known as say René Gruau or Carl Erickson, but Eula is no less important. He worked for brands such as Chanel, Balenciaga, Givenchy and Yves Saint Laurent, for magazines including Italian Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar as well as working as a graphic artist on Broadway posters and album covers. But Eula was also a major multi-tasker, working as a stylist, designer and creative director – most famously at Halston where he worked during the 70s – the decade in which he was also at the epicentre of Manhattan society and described by Andy Warhol as “the most important person in New York”. Horyn’s book is not only a really great read (she first met Eula in 2001 when she went to interview him for another book) but it’s also packed with 200 images covering all of Eula’s work including his portraits of stars from Marlene Dietrich and Elizabeth Taylor to Liza Minelli and Coco Chanel and more surprising work – such as his truly beautiful floral water-colours.