It's been a little over a year since Vancouver lost one of it's truly great icons - Virginia Leeming. I cannot tell you the number of people who, to this day, still comment on the support and influence she had on both themselves personally and the larger fashion community. When I decided to pursue this series of Behind the Scenes interviews, her name was given me time and time again as the perfect place to begin. As a self-taught writer I was nervous to say the least, but her charming smile put me at ease from the beginning and she was oh so kind in dealing with corrections. Since that first interview in January 2010, I had the privilege of sitting next to her at several graduation fashion shows for local design schools. It was a pleasure each time. So here in celebration of all she gave to Vancouver is a re-post of my article in Fame'd Magazine. Virginia - you are missed.
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| Image by Fred Fraser |
For
20 years Vancouver's fashion community was well acquainted with
Virginia Leeming as she helped shape the city's sense of style. As fashion editor for the Vancouver Sun she produced not only a weekly
offering, but a bi-yearly ten-page spread. Her camera was a constant
companion while travelling and over the years she amassed a large
collection of photographs -- candids of the many famous designers and
celebrities met at events, on the street and even at the exit door of
shows. Best of all, she loved her job.
Leeming's father was a
naval officer. The family travelled from coast-to-coast and spent
several years in England. “We had a very good life, a privileged
life in the sense that we met a lot of people who were very
interesting.” Leaving home at 19, she ended up in Montreal working
for a commercial photography studio where she began to develop some
of the skills she would eventually need as a fashion editor.
Initially the “go
for” (as in go for coffee),
she graduated to coordinator. If they needed furniture for the set,
she arranged it. Models required,
she booked them. Clothes, she located them.
After being lured away to
the Bahamas for three
years, Leeming returned to Montreal where
she landed a job assisting the editor at a men's trade fashion
magazine. When they decided to start a sister publication she was
offered the position of editor. “I learned by the seat of my
pants. I interviewed all kinds of designers and manufacturers. I
wrote stories about buttons, about zippers, about everything in the
industry including all the people that were on top of the fashion
world in Montreal.” Then in 1979 her daughter Victoria was born.
After moving back to BritishColumbia to be near family, she spent the
next several years writing freelance for local publications.
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| July 2009 Article in the Vancouver Sun |
Leeming found herself on
welfare in the early '80's when work dried up. With encouragement
from her caseworker she enrolled in an investigative journalism
course at BCIT. Shortly after finishing she
received a call from the Vancouver Sun asking if she'd like to be
considered for the job of fashion editor. Initially someone was else
was chosen, but three months later the newspaper phoned back to offer
her the position. One skill Leeming brought to the table was her
ability to work well with the photographers. “When you're working
with someone who is a creative person, you don't tell them what to
do. You work with them, or you make suggestions, but you don't say
do it my way.”
Each fashion page began
with a concept. Then it was off to various sales agents to find
clothing and shoot details to arrange. Staying ahead of the trends
was achieved by following the international wires and gut instinct.
Then the Sun began to send her to fashion weeks -- initially Toronto
and Montreal. When
she finally flew to New York City for the first time she was
“absolutely blown away by the number of shows in one week and the
number of models in each show.” As a foreign journalist she
received invitations to parties where she met the designers first
hand. During these years she saw Ivana Trump and Gregory Hines
sitting in the front row and met Kenneth Jay Lane on the street.
“You'd just bump into people. Sometimes it's serendipity.
Sometimes it's calculated. Sometimes it's by invitation only...I
felt privileged .” One her career high points was flying to Paris.
“New York City was very exciting, but Paris had the atmosphere and
it was in the city of light where the international press converged
.”
A short question and
answer with Leeming produced the following. Best part of her job -
the photography, the travelling and the interviewing. Favourite
designer – Karl Lagerfeld. “He's a bottomless pit of
creativity.” Funniest moments include
forgetting to take her tape recorder off
pause until half way through an interview with Sophia Loren and
taking a photo of Evelyn Lauder at Estée Lauder's headquarters with
no film in her camera. She also has some remarkable insights about
how the fashion scene has changed. First is the lack of budget at
newspapers with most content coming from the wire services(no local
spin). Second is the current lack of intellectual content in fashion
magazines. Lastly is that we are a little over concerned with image.
“I think we need to buoy up our self image rather than our
external image.”
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| When Leeming was first sent to fashion weeks, she had to take her own pictures. This one of Betsy Johnson was a favourite! |
For now Virginia Leeming
is enjoying her retirement. PR requests, judging at fashion shows and
teaching keep her involved. With an innate knack to recognize doors
opening and walk through them, who knows where she will find herself
next.
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