Horst. Salute to the Thirties by Horst. Foreword by Janet Flanner.

Viking Press, Studio Book, 1971.  First edition (unstated). Hardcover, ex-library with usual evidence, otherwise very good with new dust jacket protector.  Dust jacket fine except spine label.  Card pocket in back partially removed. Book of stunning celebrity portraits, including Hollywood movie stars, by Horst, who provides the Introduction. Notes, often lengthy, on the subjects of the 162 photographs by Valentine Lawford.  Most photographs are by Horst with a few by George Hoyningen-Huene.  Subjects include Gertrude Stein, Vicomtesse de Noailles, Eve Curie, Wanda Landowska, Maria Rasputin, Jean Cocteau, Maurice Ravel, Lotte Kenya, Kurt Weill, Yehudi Menuhin, Igor Stravinsky, Lily Pons, Arturo Toscanini, Grace Moore, Lotte Lehman, Lauritz Melchior, Marlene Dietrich, Carole Lombard, Greta Garbo, Edith Sitwell, Osbert Sitwell, Sybil Thorndike, Maurice Thorez, Leon Blum, Harry S. Truman, Noel Coward, Gertrude Lawrence, Mary Martin, Tallulah Bankhead, Ethel Waters, Raymond Massey, Katharine Cornell, Helen Hayes, Walter Huston, Duchess of Windsor, Coco Chanel, Cecil Beaton, Elsa Maxwell, Josephine Baker, Gloria Vanderbilt, Barbara Hutton, Diego Rivera, Salvador Dali, Andre Derain, Hoyningen-Huene, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Aldous Huxley, Edward Steichen, Janet Flanner, Andre Maurois, Paul Valery, Conde Nast, Clare Boothe Luce, Cole Porter, Carmel Snow, Diana Vreeland, Charlie Chaplin, Paulette Goddard, Myrna Loy, Mae West, Joan Crawford, Janet Gaynor, Bette Davis, Gary Cooper, Loretta Young, Constance Bennett, Ginger Rogers, Claudette Colbert, Ingrid Bergman, Johnny Weismuller, Katharine Hepburn, and many others.  Summary:

Salute to the Thirties (1971) by Horst P. Horst is a photographic retrospective and tribute to the decade of the 1930s, capturing its grace, style, and cultural energy through the lens of one of the 20th century’s most influential photographers. First published by The Viking Press, the book collects 162 black-and-white gravure plates and spans approximately 192 pages, with contributions from notable figures who contextualize the imagery.

📸 Content and Structure

• The book opens with a foreword by Janet Flanner, whose writing — both perceptive and evocative — sets the scene for the visual journey that follows.

• Horst provides an introduction that offers personal insight into the 1930s, explaining the atmosphere of the era and his own experiences as a photographer during that time.

• The main body of the book consists of full-page photographic plates by Horst and fellow photographer George Hoyningen-Huene, depicting the people, personalities, and moments that defined the decade’s glamour and cultural dynamism.

• Notes on the plates by Valentine Lawford accompany the images, giving historical context and identifying subjects, which include artists, performers, writers, and other luminaries of the period.

📍 Themes and Approach

Salute to the Thirties serves both as a visual celebration of the style and spirit of the 1930s and as a testament to Horst’s artistic eye. Through elegant compositions and masterful lighting, the photographs evoke the refinement and cultural richness of a decade when modernism, cinema, theater, fashion, and the arts intersected in vibrant ways. The inclusion of images by George Hoyningen-Huene — another leading photographer of the era — underscores the collaborative and cosmopolitan aspects of visual culture at the time.

📘 Significance

More than a simple collection of images, Salute to the Thirties is an artistic archive of a defining period in cultural history. It reflects Horst’s deep engagement with his subjects and his belief in photography as a vehicle for capturing not just likenesses but the essence of an age marked by elegance, innovation, and social change. For readers and photography enthusiasts, the book remains a compelling window into the aesthetic and cultural landscape of the 1930s.

Horst P. Horst (1906–1999) was a German-born American photographer celebrated as one of the great masters of 20th-century fashion and portrait photography. Renowned for his refined compositions, sculptural lighting, and classical elegance, Horst helped define the visual language of high fashion in the 1930s and beyond.

Early Life and Career

Born Horst Paul Albert Bohrmann in Germany, he studied architecture before turning to photography. In Paris in the early 1930s, he became the protégé of photographer George Hoyningen-Huene, who was then working for French Vogue. Through this connection, Horst began photographing for Vogue, launching a long and influential relationship with the magazine’s Paris, London, and later New York editions.

Style and Influence

Horst’s work is distinguished by:

• Dramatic, chiaroscuro lighting

• Classical references to Greek and Roman sculpture

• Meticulous staging and architectural composition

• A blend of modernist sophistication and timeless glamour

His 1939 photograph Mainbocher Corset — taken on the eve of World War II — remains one of the most iconic fashion images ever made, symbolizing both elegance and the end of an era.

Later Career

After emigrating to the United States and becoming a U.S. citizen in 1943, Horst expanded his work to include:

• Portraits of cultural and political figures

• Interior and lifestyle photography

• Books and retrospectives reflecting on the golden age of fashion

He continued working well into the late 20th century, maintaining a consistent aesthetic rooted in form, light, and grace.

Legacy

Horst P. Horst is regarded as a defining figure in fashion photography. His images capture not only clothing and beauty but also the mood and refinement of an international artistic milieu spanning Paris, London, and New York. His influence remains visible in contemporary fashion imagery, where lighting, composition, and sculptural elegance still echo his pioneering vision.