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Polly Mellen, who worked as the fashion editor for Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar, and the creative director for Allure, died at 100.
Born in 1924 in West Hartford, Connecticut, the legendary editor quickly joined the fashion industry after graduating from Miss Porter’s School, moving to New York City for brief stints at Lord & Taylor and Saks Fifth Avenue before landing her first role in publishing at Mademoiselle.
In 1950, she joined Harper’s Bazaar, working with editor Diana Vreeland, who brought her to Vogue two years later. There, she brought her unique eye to countless fashion stories, including the 26-page “The Great Fur Caravan” produced alongside photographer Richard Avedon in Japan.
During her time at Allure, which she joined as creative director in 1992, she received the Council of Fashion Designers of America’s lifetime achievement award in 1994. She also appeared in ads for Michael Kors, as well as the fashion documentary Unzipped.
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Anna Wintour, editor-in-chief of American Vogue and the chief content officer of Condé Nast, described her in Vogue’s obituary as “a mercurial grand dame with boundless energy and a deep love for her work and for the creative process,” as well as an “adored figure at Vogue and a huge part of our history.”
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As the largest ever retrospective of Irving Penn’s photography opens at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, his collaborators — including Phyllis Posnick, Issey Miyake, Polly Mellen, Marisa Berenson and Julien d’Ys — remember his greatness.
