17 December 1892

First issue of Vogue is published.

Vogue is a highly influential and globally recognized fashion and lifestyle magazine. It has become synonymous with high fashion, luxury, and sophisticated style. The magazine was first founded in the United States in 1892 by Arthur Baldwin Turnure and was later acquired by Condé Nast in 1909. Since then, Vogue has expanded its presence internationally, with editions in numerous countries, including the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Germany, China, India, and many others.

Fashion Authority: Vogue is considered one of the most authoritative voices in the fashion industry. It showcases the latest trends, designer collections, and fashion photography. The magazine has played a significant role in shaping and defining global fashion trends.

Editorial Excellence: Vogue is known for its high-quality editorial content, featuring articles on fashion, beauty, lifestyle, culture, and social issues. The magazine often includes in-depth interviews with influential personalities from various fields.

Photography and Artistry: Vogue is renowned for its visually stunning photography and artistic layouts. Many acclaimed photographers and artists have contributed to the magazine over the years, capturing iconic images that have become part of fashion history.

International Editions: While the U.S. edition is the flagship, Vogue has expanded its reach with editions tailored to specific regions and countries. Each international edition reflects the unique style and culture of its respective audience while maintaining the overall Vogue aesthetic.

Vogue Events: The magazine organizes and participates in various fashion events and initiatives globally. Vogue’s Fashion’s Night Out is an example of an annual event that takes place in major fashion capitals, encouraging shopping and celebrating the fashion industry.

Digital Presence: In addition to the print editions, Vogue has a strong online presence, providing digital content through its website and social media platforms. This allows the magazine to reach a wider and more diverse audience.

Influence on Fashion Industry: Vogue and its editors, such as Anna Wintour, have had a profound impact on the fashion industry. The magazine has helped launch the careers of numerous designers, models, and photographers.

17 December 1892

First issue of Vogue is published.

On December 17, 1892, the first issue of Vogue magazine was published. Featuring a drawing of a debutante by A.B. Wenzel on its cover, the weekly publication was targeted to elite Manhattanites. As styles and society changed, Vogue managed to maintain its role as a fashion authority and trendsetter. As Anna Wintour, the current Editor-in-Chief once said, “Vogue is a fashion magazine, and a fashion magazine is about change.” For the past 125 years, Vogue has been there to document and influence the sartorial and societal vicissitudes in the United States and around the world.

Founded by the American businessman Arthur Baldwin Turnure, Vogue was acquired in 1905 by Condé Montrose Nast, after Turnure’s death. Under Nast’s control, Vogue became a bi-weekly magazine, expanded its readership and earned a reputation as an important fashion source.

Vogue has had its share of powerful and visionary editors-in-chief. Under the leadership of Edna Woolman Chase, the magazine continued to expand its influence in the fashion world. With Diana Vreeland at the helm, Vogue responded to the popularity of the counterculture movement, covering downtown bohemian fashion boutiques while also maintaining the magazine’s uptown glamour. She booked the most expensive shoot in fashion history, featuring 60s “it girl,” Veruschka Von Lehndorff. Shot by photographer Richard Avedon over five weeks in Japan, it is rumored to have cost one million dollars. Grace Mirabella made Vogue a monthly magazine while adding more articles alongside its already famous glossy fashion spreads.

In July of 1988, Anna Wintour replaced Mirabella as the new editor-in-chief. With her trademark bob cut and big sunglasses, she envisioned Vogue as the readers’ “glamourous girlfriend” and added a more youthful vibe to the magazine. While still highlighting the luxury brands that had always been the magazine’s mainstays, Wintour also mixed in more affordable pieces. Her first cover embodied the magazine’s new look. It featured Israeli model Michaela Bercu in a glamorous Christian Lacroix jacket paired with jeans. Wintour’s tastemaking style, along with the vision of fashion editor Grace Coddington, led to the increase of Vogue’s circulation and popularity.

Although the magazine never reports on sales, it is said that the highest selling issue of Vogue was the 1992 100th Anniversary issue. The iconic cover featured ten supermodels, including Christy Turlington, Linda Evangelista, Cindy Crawford, Claudia Schiffer, and Naomi Campbell.

To this day, Vogue continues to set new trends, while chronicling our ever-changing culture and style. With 22 print editions from Vogue Japan to Vogue Saudi Arabia, the magazine reaches over 24 million readers around the globe. In addition, Vogue.com boasts over 42 million unique monthly online users. Dubbed the “Then & Now” issue, the December 2017 magazine looks back at the legendary artists who have changed culture, beauty, politics, and fashion over the past 125 years. And, Vogue has been there all the while, both documenting and influencing our fashion sense.

17 December 1892

Vogue is published for the first time.

On December 17, 1892, the first issue of Vogue magazine was published. Featuring a drawing of a debutante by A.B. Wenzel on its cover, the weekly publication was targeted to elite Manhattanites. As styles and society changed, Vogue managed to maintain its role as a fashion authority and trendsetter. As Anna Wintour, the current Editor-in-Chief once said, “Vogue is a fashion magazine, and a fashion magazine is about change.” For the past 125 years, Vogue has been there to document and influence the sartorial and societal vicissitudes in the United States and around the world.

Founded by the American businessman Arthur Baldwin Turnure, Vogue was acquired in 1905 by Condé Montrose Nast, after Turnure’s death. Under Nast’s control, Vogue became a bi-weekly magazine, expanded its readership and earned a reputation as an important fashion source.

Vogue has had its share of powerful and visionary editors-in-chief. Under the leadership of Edna Woolman Chase (1914-1952), the magazine continued to expand its influence in the fashion world. With Diana Vreeland at the helm (1962-1971), Vogue responded to the popularity of the counterculture movement, covering downtown bohemian fashion boutiques while also maintaining the magazine’s uptown glamour. She booked the most expensive shoot in fashion history, featuring 60s “it girl,” Veruschka Von Lehndorff. Shot by photographer Richard Avedon over five weeks in Japan, it is rumored to have cost one million dollars. Grace Mirabella (1971-1988) made Vogue a monthly magazine while adding more articles alongside its already famous glossy fashion spreads.

In July of 1988, Anna Wintour replaced Mirabella as the new editor-in-chief. With her trademark bob cut and big sunglasses, she envisioned Vogue as the readers’ “glamourous girlfriend” and added a more youthful vibe to the magazine. While still highlighting the luxury brands that had always been the magazine’s mainstays, Wintour also mixed in more affordable pieces. Her first cover embodied the magazine’s new look. It featured Israeli model Michaela Bercu in a glamorous Christian Lacroix jacket paired with jeans. Wintour’s tastemaking style, along with the vision of fashion editor Grace Coddington, led to the increase of Vogue’s circulation and popularity.

17 December 1892

The first issue of Vogue is published.

The first issue of Vogue magazine came out on December 17, 1892. It started as small, weekly society magazine, nothing like the Vogue we see today. It released its first issue “with the aim of attracting”, in the words of its founding publisher Arthur Baldwin Turnure, “the sage as well as the debutante, men of affairs as well as the belle.” (A. B. Wenzel/Vogue/Condé Nast). The first cover featured a debutante at her début – not much of a surprise there.

The small, weekly society magazine that went by the name of Vogue was staffed by “ladies and gentleman, so no one worked very hard and anybody who wanted extra duties was welcome to them. When Chase was just an 18-year-old “little girl from the country” (aka Asbury Park, New Jersey), a friend helped her get hired into Vogue’s circulation department, barely three years after the magazine was founded on this day in 1893. The teenager lived in a Manhattan boarding house with other single working women in an atmosphere she nostalgically describes as “family-like.” She threw herself into her job, a full-time gig addressing subscriber’s envelopes and adding new subscriber’s names into a ledger. Chase was paid $10 a week and loved every second of it.