Talks

Style icon, cultural commentator, and Vogue contributing editor André Leon Talley comes to BAM to discuss his extraordinary life and unique position as observer, critic, and participant in the spheres of art and culture.

Talley was born in the segregated South. At the age of 16, he announced that he wanted to be a magazine editor. The odds were against a young black man from North Carolina in the 1960s, but he went on to earn his bachelor’s degree at North Carolina Central University and a master’s degree in French at Brown. In New York, he interned for Diana Vreeland, who introduced him to Andy Warhol. He worked as an editor for Warhol’s Interview magazine, then as a fashion editor for Women’s Wear Daily and, eventually, as the Paris Bureau Chief for both WWD and W. In 1983, Talley became a writer for Vogue, and five years later was named Creative Director of the magazine, penning monthly columns, frequent features, and interviews—including the celebrated cover story on First Lady Michelle Obama in 2009.

Tamron Hall’s appearance is dedicated to the Tamron Renate Fund on Safe Horizon.