A Nod to the Forties

Follow Me, Aug/Sep 1987. Ph: Martyn Thompson.

Peplums, polka dots, houndstooth checks and stripes and high waists; burgundy lipstick and polished chic: so many things to adore here. But what immediately struck me as I flicked through #10 of my tearsheet books was the photography and styling.

These pages are from FOLLOW me, a magazine of Australian publishing lore (I have waxed lyrical about it on previous occasions, here and here), and the pictures were shot in 1987, for the Aug/Sep issue of that year by one of my favourite Australian (although English-born) photographers, Martyn Thompson.

There is certainly a reference to the 1940s with such a fantastic selection of black and white garments, but the whole effect is modern – although these outfits would now be considered vintage themselves! The model has an air of Forties elegance about her, in her pose and the tilt of her head. Yet she is a little more relaxed, less stuffy than her decades-older counterparts. Perhaps it is also the fact that she is not wearing any confining undergarments – she actually looks like she could take a deep breath quite easily.

The desaturated colours of the images are beautiful too; the pale lemon and taupe backgrounds create that vintage look much more prettily than stark white would have.

Click on the images for larger versions.

Signalling a new silhouette, a body skim that moves to the rhythm of swing. Note fitted tops with full skirts, long-line jackets, tucked at the waist, empire-lined skirts, waisted high jackets that flounce and skirts that shorten to flip a pretty flirt. It all fits in with a femininity that fancies the classic curves.