EDITOR’S LETTER
In this, our first issue of 2017, we begin our year’s celebrations of Bazaar’s 150th anniversary by looking back into the past, to the remarkable women who created and shaped the magazine. Ever since its debut issue in 1867, Bazaar has been led by a series of women with a mission to place fashion in a wider cultural and political context; indeed, its first editor, Mary Louise Booth, was a distinguished author who was also an active campaigner against slavery, and a powerful advocate of female independence (including the right to vote).
Mary Booth’s dedication to women’s suffrage was matched by her commitment to literary excellence, and subsequent editors followed in this fine tradition, as well as ensuring that the magazine showcased the world’s leading artists. From the start, Bazaar was defined by its choice to champion who and what it believed in; this was never a magazine that sneered at others, preferring to offer inspiration and encouragement instead.
This sense of warm friendship and sorority continues to be at the heart of everything we do at Bazaar today; by understanding our past, we hope to shine a light into the future. Hence our choice to celebrate the women we admire – such as this month’s cover star, Claire Danes – and our pledge to give a platform to diversity (as is apparent in our choice of fashion models, photographers, writers and artists). I feel so lucky to be the editor of Bazaar at this moment in time – and to work with such an extraordinarily talented team – but I also feel a sense of being supported by the steadfast women who came before us. It is they who suggest the way forward and their spirit that still lives on…