S Poddar
Anna Wintour walks into our interview room with her signature dark glasses. For three decades, Wintour has been the power behind the throne at Vogue, which she has edited in chief since 1988, and she still exudes the mystery that has defined her long career in fashion.
The setting for our conversation is the immersive exhibition VOGUE: Inventing the Runway, a project she conceptualized to celebrate the history and evolution of the catwalk. As we speak in the dimly lit space surrounded by expansive digital screens, Wintour’s ever-present sunglasses remain. I hesitantly ask her about their purpose. “They help me see and they help me not see,” she says cryptically. They help me be seen and not be seen. They are a prop, I would say.”
This sense of duality—both visible and mysterious—is characteristic, in fact, of the figure of Wintour herself: she has been at the center of the fashion world yet is simultaneously elusive.
The exhibition space, this time London’s Lightroom, is a fully digital, immersive environment using leading-edge digital projections. There have been exhibitions celebrating everyone from David Hockney to Tom Hanks. But it now provides a front-row seat to some of the most momentous fashion shows in history. Of course, after decades of attendance at thousands of shows, it is easy to grow desensitized. And for many visitors, though, this is their first real exposure to a fashion show. She tried very hard to make sure they felt what these events are all about.
As a long-reigning queen of the fashion world, Wintour’s own front-row seat has been a literal one for decades. Often perched on a delicate gold chair, she is a permanent fixture at every major show. Her punctuality is legendary. “I’m horribly punctual, usually early,” she admits. This characteristic once earned her the gratitude of an audience when she admonished designer Marc Jacobs for a notoriously late show. “We all yelled at him so much after that, the next season, he started not just on time but five minutes early,” she remembers with a grin.
Wintour’s keen eye for detail and deep respect for tradition shine through in her work. The Vogue exhibition traces the evolution of fashion through vivid chapters narrated by Cate Blanchett. It features iconic moments, from black-and-white footage of early couture salons to Pharrell Williams’ 2023 debut for Louis Vuitton—a pop-culture event streamed to a billion viewers worldwide. Wintour reflects on the shift from exclusivity to inclusivity in fashion. “Now everyone can come to the party, which is as it should be,” she says.
Revisited here are some of the most extraordinary moments in fashion history – for instance, Karl Lagerfeld’s 2017 Chanel show featuring a space-themed set with a rocket launch. “It was extraordinary. and you couldn’t wait to see what he was going to come up with next,” Wintour shares. The other groundbreaking moment, Lagerfeld’s 2007 Fendi show where models strutted along the Great Wall of China, embodies that bold creativity that defines haute couture.
For insiders, Wintour’s influence extends far beyond magazine pages. She has been a champion of blending fashion with celebrity culture, evident in her orchestration of the annual Met Gala. The star-studded event, held on the first Monday of May, has become a global spectacle of outrageous fashion and A-list appearances.
For the many outside the world of fashion, Wintour is still Miranda Priestly, the fictional character of the film The Devil Wears Prada. The actress who portrayed her, Meryl Streep, has immortalized this very realistic combination of steely temperament and sharp wit. She’ll leave it to everyone to decide whether there’s an iota of truth to such comparisons. When asked if her public persona feels like a role she must play, she responds simply, “I don’t really think about it. What I’m really interested in is the creative aspect of my job.”
Despite her fastidiously polished public image, Wintour downplays the notion that she is invulnerable to rejection or criticism. “That is absolutely untrue. They often say no, but that’s a good thing. No is a wonderful word,” she comments. Her ability to absorb rejection has undoubtedly contributed to her success.
Under Wintour’s leadership, Vogue has morphed into a global powerhouse that changes effortlessly with the digital tide. In an age dominated by influencers on social media, Vogue stands alone, its power and influence owed, at least partially, to her vision. Wintour has insured the magazine stays as authoritative in style as ever while employing her instinct for what hits with audiences.
Her enduring influence stems from a unique combination of exacting standards, creative vision, and adaptability. She may play coy about her personal style choices—admitting to traveling to London with only a couple of suitcases—but her commitment to presenting herself impeccably is unwavering. “It’s really about respect in how you present yourself,” she explains.
As our conversation wraps, it’s clear that Anna Wintour is much more than the sum of her public persona. Behind the sunglasses and the polished exterior lies a woman deeply committed to her craft, unafraid of change, and always looking ahead. While her legacy is firmly rooted in fashion history, her gaze remains fixed on the future.
