Style Icons – the 1970s

Tags

1970s style icons. fahsion, anya sushko inspiration, Bianca Jagger, chanel, Diane Von Furstenberg, Farrah Fawcett, fashion icons series, iman, Iman Mohamed Abdulmajid, Jerry Hall, michael jackson, mick jagger, models, muse, saint laurent, style icons

We pay tribute to the women (& men) throughout the past century who have left an undisputed mark on style and fashion and inspire our sartorial choices up to today. This week, we take a look at the 70s, probably the most remarkable of all periods in fashion. Brave in its freedom, elegant in its playfulness, sexier than ever before, this is a time when fashion celebrated life in every fiber.

Yves Saint Lauren

“Chanel freed women, and I empowered them.” Saint Laurent also stated, “I created the contemporary woman’s wardrobe.” From the safari jacket and the peacoat to the famous Le Smoking, Saint Laurent’s successes were so potent ,that he was not only the most influential designer of the second half of the twentieth century, but one of the most inspiring ever. A true symbol of elegance, fashion wouldn’t be the same without his talent. He redefined femininity, creating arguably the most famous (and sexiest) suit for women, “Le Smoking” tuxedo, and innovative collections with names such as Pop Art, Ballet Russes, and Picasso.

Saint Laurent and the iconic ‘Le Smoking’ taxudo

Halston

Roy Halston Frowick, a.k.a. Halston, “personified American fashion in the 1970’s.” What would Studio 54 have been without Liza Minnelli and Bianca Jagger doing the Bump in their Halston jumpsuits and jersey halters? You name it, he slapped his label on it: furs, luggage, flight attendant uniforms, cosmetics, fragrance, raincoats, even carpets.

Roy Halston with models from his photoshoots

Diane Von Furstenberg

The word “iconic” is overused in fashion, but the silk jersey wrap dress genuinely is just that. When it arrived on the scene in 1972, it signaled the New Woman—the then-revolutionary concept of competing in a man’s world while looking totally feminine—and within a couple of years it had landed its creator, Diane von Furstenberg, on the cover of Newsweek.

The DVF look is one of the most clearly defined—and therefore recognizable—anywhere in the shopping world. The designer herself projects an elegance and sureness of vision that make her, still, the best image with which to market her own brand.

She achieved her dream in spectacular style, launching her signature wrap dress   fast forward almost 40 years, and there is still no wardrobe that’s considered complete without one.

Diane von Furstenberg, on the cover of Newsweek with the iconic wrap dress

Farrah Fawcett

With her blond ‘feathered’ hair, gorgeous smile and Californian tan she was the ultimate 70′s sex kitten and became the symbol of a whole generation.“Farrah hair” was a phenomenon trumped only by the Rachel ‘do of the 1990′s. Fawcett’s influence on style and fashion far outlasted the relatively brief time she spent on that iconic TV show “Charlie’s Angels”.

Fresh faced and always smiling, Farrah represented the girl next door and as such her fashion style was relaxed. Her favorite look consisted of high-waisted jeans paired with blouses, tees or simple jumpers. She rarely wore a bra which only added to her sexy care-free image. She also knew how to glam things up in the evenings by picking dresses that would show off her killer figure. The gold chain-mail dress she wore at the 1978′s Academy Awards (designed by Stephen Burrows) remains one of her most iconic looks.

Farrah Fawcett during the 1978 Academy Awards

Jerry Hall

Hall had graced the covers of 40 magazines by 1977. Hall was one of Helmut Newton’s favorites.  Jerry Hall personified 1970s glamour. The Texan belle, turned model, turned actress is famed for her incredibly long legs, thick mane of blonde hair and high profile relationship with ex-husband Mick Jagger – lead singer of The Rolling Stones, if you needed reminding. Hall’s daughter Georgia May Jagger has inherited her statuesque beauty and now follows directly in Hall’s footsteps working with designers including Vivienne Westwood and Chanel.

Jerry Hall

Bianca Jagger

This Nicaraguan-born activist rewrote the fashion rule book when she wore a white suit by Savile Row tailor Tommy Nutter to marry her Rolling Stone in St Tropez in 1971. Jagger not only wore 70s fashion, she lived it; a Studio 54 stalwart, she was friends with the likes of YSL and Halston, playing model and muse alike. From turbans to tube tops, nothing was off limits for this original fashion risk-taker.

Bianca Jagger wearing white suit jacket on her wedding day

Iman

“My dream woman is Iman.”—Yves Saint-Laurent

She was Iman Mohamed Abdulmajid when the American photographer Peter Beard discovered her as a young student at the University of Nairobi. Her elegant, sculptural beauty—the impossibly long neck, the regal features, those cheekbones—was a revelation when she hit the international scene in the late seventies and eighties. At a time when the glossy pages were dominated by athletic, all-American girls, she was an instant favorite among editors and nearly a religion among designers, many of whom called her their muse.

Iman with Michael Jackson

Follow our ‘Style Icons’ series from the beginning here