Edward Steichen, recognized by many as one of the finest creative photographers in the world, became the official photographer for Condé Nast's Vanity Fair and Vogue in 1923. Courtesy Condé Nast Archive, New York © Condé Nast Publications

“Take good photographs, and the art will take care of itself.” —Edward Steichen

(TORONTO, ON: July 30, 2009) From September 26, 2009 to January 3, 2010, the Art Gallery of Ontario will host an exhibition that proves glamour never goes out of style. Edward Steichen: In High Fashion, the Condé Nast Years, 1923 –1937 presents 200 beautifully preserved gelatin silver prints from the Vogue and Vanity Fair Condé Nast Archive and brings them to Canada for the first time.

Edward Steichen’s black-and-white fashion and celebrity images defined glamour in the 1920s and ‘30s, and they still do today. As the chief photographer for Vogue and Vanity Fair, Steichen filled the pages of Condé Nast’s flagship magazines with brilliant and unforgettable images — transforming fashion into high art as he photographed the collections of leading houses such as Poiret, Chanel, Lanvin, Grès and Schiaparelli. He immortalized hundreds of luminaries, from writers and artists to politicians and actors — including George Bernard Shaw, Noel Coward, Martha Graham, Amelia Earhart, Charlie Chaplin, Gary Cooper and Joan Crawford.

When Steichen first took the job with Condé Nast, he set off quite a furor. He was already a well- established figure in photography’s fine arts movement of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and his move to the world of magazines was viewed by many as a betrayal. Yet Steichen believed that photographs constituted a powerful new form of communication — and the pages of Vogue and Vanity Fair provided an irresistible platform.

“Steichen posed his subjects in striking environments, lit them dramatically and coaxed from them a vitality that the photographs seem barely able to contain,” explained Sophie Hackett, AGO’s Assistant Curator, Photography. “His photographs are by turn mischievous, languid, witty and graceful. He pioneered a new visual language of glamour, profoundly shaping the look of celebrity and fashion to this day.”

“Edward Steichen set out to ‘make Vogue a Louvre,’” said Matthew Teitelbaum, the AGO’s Michael and Sonja Koerner director, and CEO. “And with this exhibition of his fashion photographs and celebrity portraits, we recognize his innovative work.”

“The volunteers of the AGO enjoy supporting art and sharing their knowledge and time with visitors,” said AGO Volunteer President Anne Marie Smith. “We are proud to sponsor the Edward Steichen exhibition with funds from the Volunteer Endowment Trust. The glamour and elegance of the photographs make Steichen's work easy to share.”

On view from September 26, 2009 to January 3, 2010, Edward Steichen: In High Fashion, the Condé Nast Years, 1923 –1937 is a rare opportunity to see the work of a man who knew that photographs could make us swoon.

Accompanying the exhibition is a 288-page publication, Edward Steichen: In High Fashion, the Condé Nast Years, 1923 –1937, by William A. Ewing and Todd Brandow (Minneapolis: FEP Editions, 2008) – with essays by Musée de l´Elysée director William A. Ewing and curator Nathalie Herschdorfer, ICP curator Carol Squiers, and Kunsthaus Zurich curator Tobia Bezzola. Retails for $60 at shopAGO.

Edward Steichen: In High Fashion, the Condé Nast Years, 1923 –1937 is curated by William A. Ewing, Director, Musée de l´Elysée; Todd Brandow, Executive Director, Foundation for the Exhibition of Photography; and Nathalie Herschdorfer, Curator, Musée de l’Elysée.

The exhibition has been organized by the Foundation for the Exhibition of Photography, Minneapolis, and the Musée de l’Elysée, Lausanne, in collaboration with the Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto.

Generously supported by the Volunteers of the Art Gallery of Ontario. 

Some fashion photographs from Condé Nast Archive/CORBIS :

Edward Steichen, Marion Morehouse (aka Mrs. e. e. Cummings), Louiseboulanger dress, 1926. Image by © Condé Nast Archive/CORBIS

Edward Steichen, Marion Morehouse (aka Mrs. e. e. Cummings), Louiseboulanger dress, 1926. Image by © Condé Nast Archive/CORBIS

Edward Steichen, Kendall Lee, Cartier Earrings, 1925. Image by © Condé Nast Archive/CORBIS

Edward Steichen, Jule Andre, 1929. Image by © Condé Nast Archive/CORBIS

Edward Steichen, Ilka Chase, 1933. Image by © Condé Nast Archive/CORBIS

Edward Steichen, Anna May Wong, 1931. Image by © Condé Nast Archive/CORBIS

Edward Steichen, Model Wearing Velvet Cloche by Reboux, 1925. Image by © Condé Nast Archive/CORBIS

Edward Steichen, Gloria Swanson behind a veil. Image by © Condé Nast Archive/CORBIS

Edward Steichen, Two gowns by Madeleine Vionnet, Marion Morehouse, in black. Courtesy Condé Nast Archive, New York © Condé Nast Publications

Edward Steichen, Fashion. Courtesy Condé Nast Archive, New York © Condé Nast Publications

Edward Steichen, American actress Mary Heberden. Courtesy Condé Nast Archive, New York © Condé Nast Publications

Edward Steichen, Marion Morehouse in a bouffant dress and actress Helen Lyons in a long sleeve dress by Kargère; masks by the illustrator W.T. Benda, 1926. Courtesy Condé Nast Archive, New York © Condé Nast Publications

Edward Steichen, Actress Joan Crawford in a dress by Schiaparelli, 1932. Courtesy Condé Nast Archive, New York © Condé Nast Publications

Edward Steichen, Model Marion Morehouse in a dress by Vionnet, 1930. Courtesy Condé Nast Archive, New York © Condé Nast Publications

Edward Steichen, Gary Cooper. Courtesy Condé Nast Archive, New York © Condé Nast Publications

Edward Steichen, Model Dinarzade in a dress by Poiret, 1924. Courtesy Condé Nast Archive, New York © Condé Nast Publications

Edward Steichen, Evening shoes by Vida Moore, 1927. Courtesy Condé Nast Archive, New York © Condé Nast Publications