A trove of the veteran editor’s possessions went under the hammer at Christie’s in New York on Wednesday, fetching almost $1.4 million, before a further 350 lots were sold online by the auction house.
Talley, who was Vogue magazine’s longtime creative director, died last year aged 73. He owned a vast fashion collection, with garments on sale ranging from Tom Ford kimonos to a selection of Prada crocodile coats.
Among the top sellers were a Christian Dior greatcoat and a silk satin “Climate Revolution” cloak by the late Vivienne Westwood, which fetched $40,320 and for $32,760, respectively.
There were an additional 350 items available in a separate online auction, which ended Thursday, and netted about $2.16 million.
Talley was known not only for his love of fashion, but for his interest in art and culture. Two different Andy Warhol artworks (along with a Louis Vuitton luggage set) shared the title of the auction’s top seller, each fetching $94,500.
Talley’s Instagram account is still active, and posted on Monday the lyrics to Rihanna’s “Umbrella” — her second-to-last song in her Super Bowl performance — tagging the singer in the photo caption.
“Rihanna’s tribute made me teary,”
commented socialite Patricia Altschul, a friend of Talley’s
Also among the big-ticket items was a Bradley Theodore portrait of former Vogue editor-in-chief Diana Vreeland that sold for just over $40,000. Several other photos of Vreeland appeared in the sale, as did an Annie Leibovitz photo of Vogue’s top gun Anna Wintour.
Talley’s editorial career spanned nearly 50 years — from 1975 to 2013 — and included stints, among others, at Vanity Fair, W, and Vogue, where he was the first Black male creative director of the magazine.
He died in January 2022 at the age of 73, less than two years after the publishing of his controversial memoir, “In the Chiffon Trenches.”
