Legendary fashion figure André Leon Talley has died. He was 73 years old. Talley was named as creative director of US Vogue in 1988, the first African American man to hold such a position at the title. There he would work alongside the magazine’s editor Anna Wintour until 1995.

In 1998, Talley became editor-at-large of Vogue, a position he would maintain until 2013. In addition to other high-powered editorial positions at titles such as W magazine, Talley dabbled in the world of TV as a judge on America’s Next Top Model.

Main image: Instagram @andreltalley.

Talley, who firmly believed that style transcends race and time, was beloved for his flamboyance – both in his fashion commentary and the striking kaftans, robes and accessories that flanked his six foot seven inches figure. Through his work, the journalist championed diversity in the world of fashion – both on the runway and off.

In 2020, Talley published his memoir The Chiffon Trenches in which he depicts his ascendance as a young gay man in North Carolina to the upper echelons of fashion publishing. (It is now fashion lore that Talley got his start as a receptionist at Andy Warhol’s Interview magazine in 1974.) In the book, Talley describes his (often fractured) relationships with some of fashion’s most influential figureheads including Anna Wintour, Karl Lagerfeld and Naomi Campbell. 

Tributes are flooding in for the fashion journalist whose career, spanning six decades, impacted so many. Speaking of Talley’s death, editor-in-chief of British Vogue Edward Enninful, OBE, has said. “R.I.P dearest Andre. Without you, there would be no me. Thank you for paving the way.”