#WSJTheOne
Photography by Lachlan Bailey for WSJ. Magazine Styling by Clare Richardson
On Monday evening, Kristina O’Neill, editor in chief of WSJ. Magazine, will chat with the iconic ’90s models Amber Valletta, Carolyn Murphy, and Shalom Harlow. The trio reunited for the WSJ. May cover and inside story, currently on newsstands.
I posted recently that I don’t spend much time looking in the rearview mirror, but the ’90s, an important era in my career, seem to be dogging me. I remember vividly when each of these women showed up in my office at Vogue for their first go-see. Fresh-faced and, most likely, terrified, I knew that each one would succeed and I went on to book them for Vogue, then later Harper’s Bazaar, and countless fashion shows. When they arrived on the scene, the fashion winds were shifting away from the glamorous supermodels to girls who could wear both grunge and couture — these three fit the bill. And, yes, at the time they were teenaged girls. Refreshingly, they were eager to work (show up at dawn and work long hours without complaint) and, even better, diva was not in their lexicon.
All three are still modeling and have grown into remarkable women. I look forward to hearing what they are up to now. Click here to join the conversation on May 24 at 6 PM.
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What a lovely memory of your meeting three girls who went on to succeed in a big way in a tough field. Your kind words must surely be meaningful to them.
Preston you were a trailblazer! I related much more to those models than to the glamazon types. Used to love when Vogue and Harpers (and Allure!) landed in our office, so thick and smelling of Calvin Klein Eternity fragrance inserts! This shoot is lovely, it could have been taken back then, it has the same energy
What wonderful reflections on your career! And it must be exciting to see how your stories and their characters continue over the years. These three models are neat success stories.
In the early 90’s, I was a wide-eyed college student from Philadelphia with aspirations of entering the fashion industry. One of my (many) part-time gigs was working as a dresser for The Ground Crew. I did more shows than I can remember…I got to dress them all (plus other famous faces) over 4 years. One season…I swear Amber and I followed each other around from show to show.
It was so great to watch their rise. They were happy for each other & supportive of each other’s success. True class acts.