fashion photography

Description

Jean Patchett's modeling career provides us a vast body of high fashion photographs from the pages of Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, Glamour, Charm, and Life magazines. In addition to "high fashion couture" features, there are hundreds of images of Jean's modeling ads for Christian Dior, Neiman Marcus, DeBeers, Cadillac Motors, Revlon, Botany, Julis Garfinkle Co., Bergdorf Goodman, Hutzler's, David Levine, Nettie Rosenstein, Hartzdale, Moordale, Miron, and Avisco to name a few. There are several never before seen photos from the archives of fashion photography portfolios, and candid photographs from the Auer and Patchett families. Jean Patchett modeled from 1948 until she retired in 1963. Jean did model selectively after 1963 and was available to photographers for special assignments through the 1970s. In the 1980s Jean moved from New York City, to La Quinta, CA with her husband. During Jean's heyday her accomplishments became legendary, as she was one of the most recognizable and popular models in American fashion couture. The October, 1950 issue of Vogue Magazine featured Jean Patchett not just on its cover, but on many pages of the feature section! In this publication there were five full page illustrations, 3 partial page illustrations, and 4 full page advertisements! The number and frequency of Jean's appearances in fashion magazines was amazing. She had become the center of fashion photography, and was in great demand. Jean Patchett was referred to as the "Queen of Fashion Inc." by fashion editors and photographers during this decade. "An absolutely stunning creature with a signature beauty mark, Jean was a super model decades before the term 'super model' was coined, and, staggeringly, has had more covers than any fashion model in history," Said agency owner Jerry Ford of Ford Models, who represented Jean in her heyday during the Fifties. "Jean Patchett was to Ford what Babe Ruth was to the Yankees." Jean's distinct features helped define the face of fashion for over a decade, the body of work she did is enormous, and the legacy she and fashion photographers created together is monumental. Jean Patchett was prolific, her date book documented numerous photo sessions each day in New York. The camera loved Jean and Jean loved the camera. Jean worked in the same glamorous era as cover girls Dorian Leigh, Suzy Parker and Lisa Fonssagrives. Jean Patchett was the first star model for New York's Ford Models, a new agency when Jean walked in the door the spring of 1948. "I don't remember everyone, but I do remember her," Eileen Ford said. "You just had to take a deep breath, even then. She had on a black coat with black velvet at the shoulders and a black velvet beret--all made by her mother--and garnet earrings, bracelet and necklace. She really was a country girl." Eileen Ford was impressed with Jean Patchett, but told her to loose 20 pounds and come back in a month; you're as big as a house! At that time Jean weighed 135 pounds. Jean Patchett returned to start work for the Ford Agency weighing 115 pounds and was 5 feet 9, and measured 34-23-35 inches. In her early career many readers of the slick magazines did not know her name but they knew her face. Jean's face was startlingly and unconventionally beautiful, with bone structure large slightly delineated chin. But her features, delightful as they were, were not responsible for making her the most sought after, the busiest, and the most successful photographic model in New York. Jean Patchett was a highly paid models because of a blemish. Jean had a mole next to her right eye which she darkened with an eyebrow pencil to make it more prominent. For the mole became her trademark. Manufacturers of every product from toothpaste to fashions, and jewelry to luxury cars insisted on having the girl with the mole in their advertisements.