Fashionable Lines

Several months back, as I was doing a little preliminary design concepting, I was struck by the illustrative style of Bernard Blossac.

It's easy to get lost in a world of Google images, and I often find myself slipping down the slope. When I find something that interests me, I immediately must know more. So Bernard Blossac, what's your story?

Bernard Blossac was a fashion designer who illustrated for Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar among other high-end fashion magazines during the 1940s. Born Bernard de la Bourdonnaie-Blossac in 1917 (d. 2011) in the suburbs of Paris, he was stationed in Paris during the German occupation, where the vogue lifestyle seemed to continue, despite being occupied by Germany,  

It's his combination of pencil and watercolor, and the limited use of color that really appeals to me. The linework in Blossac's illustrations is so dynamic—looking so effortless yet providing the images with so much depth and life. I love the way these fashionable people are painting amongst every day scenes– parks, restaurants, the street, etc. Despite the often commonplace surroundings, there is something aristocratic and elegant about each of them.

I'd love to encourage you to read more on Blossac but while finding images of his work was simple enough, finding out more about the artist himself proved rather difficult. But you can tumble with Blossac here.