Bill Cunningham: On the Street - by New York Times (Hardcover)

About the Book

This official book of photographs houses the 50-year collection of the most iconic and beloved photographs taken by prolific fashion photographer Cunningham, the King of Street Style, known for wearing a blue work jacket and riding a bicycle around New York City as he captured cutting-edge style.

Book Synopsis

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - The first published collection of photographs by the icon of street style, bringing together favorites published in The New York Times alongside never-before-seen work across five decades.

"A dazzling kaleidoscope from the gaze of an artist who saw beauty at every turn."--André Leon Talley

Bill Cunningham's photography captured the evolution of style, of trends, and of the everyday, both in New York City and in Paris. But his work also shows that street style is not only about fashion; it's about the people and the changing culture.

These photographs--many never before seen, others having originally appeared in The New York Times and elsewhere--move from decade to decade, beginning in the 1970s and continuing until Cunningham's death in 2016. Here you'll find Cunningham's distinctive chronicling of the 1980s transit strike, the rise of 1990s casual Fridays, the sadness that fell over the city following 9/11, Inauguration Day 2009, the onset of selfies, and many other significant moments.

This enduring portfolio is enriched by essays that provide a revealing portrait of Cunningham and a few of his many fascinations and influences, contributed by Cathy Horyn, Tiina Loite, Vanessa Friedman, Ruth La Ferla, Guy Trebay, Penelope Green, Jacob Bernstein, and a much favored subject, Anna Wintour. More than anything, On the Street is a timeless representation of Cunningham's commitment to capturing the here and now.

"An absolute delight."--People

Review Quotes

"Bill Cunningham: On the Street is the work of a great anthropologist and fashion genius. Through his skilled eyes and his camera lens, he chronicled a half-century of fashion, capturing the high road, as well as the man or woman, in the fashion parade of daily life. This book is a dazzling kaleidoscope from the gaze of an artist who saw beauty at every turn."--André Leon Talley, Vogue contributing editor

"On the Street helps fill the void left by Bill's absence. His voice and his vision are very much alive on these pages, and the pictures and words are possibly even more potent the second time around. Remarkably, even though Bill's images meticulously and wittily document fashion trends, the photographs never seem dated. We have in this book the New York we want to believe in, a magical metropolis where every resident, of every species, and even the flowers blooming in the park, have bewitching style. With this survey of his work, organized both chronologically and thematically, we finally see ourselves as Bill saw us--as a proud and restless tribe of exhibitionist-voyeurs."--Amy Fine Collins, Vanity Fair special correspondent

"This book is so inspiring, not only for the incredible fashion and images that Bill captured, but also for celebrating his decades-long commitment to the genre of street style."--Scott Schuman, The Sartorialist

"The history of fashion is actually the history of fashion photography, and in that respect, Bill Cunningham is our Herodotus."--Judith Thurman, staff writer and cultural critic at The New Yorker

"Pure joy and an absolute must for fashion lovers and Cunningham fans."--Booklist (starred review)

About the Author

Bill Cunningham was an American fashion icon and photographer for The New York Times from 1978 to 2016, known for his candid and street photography. Before capturing the Times's attention with a candid of Greta Garbo, Bill was a designer of women's hats, then a fashion writer for Women's Wear Daily and the Chicago Tribune.