On June 17th, artist, heiress, and fashion designer, Gloria Vanderbilt died at her Manhattan home. Her son, CNN news anchor Anderson Cooper, announced her passing in a touching segment on the network. Throughout her life, Vanderbilt was known for many things, and all of them were tied to her impeccable taste and style.
Dubbed the “poor little rich girl” in the 1930s because of a custody battle between her mother and aunts, Vanderbilt spent her entire life in the spotlight. She had several very public marriages, and an even more public affair with Frank Sinatra. In the 1970s, she began her own fashion company and became known for her “derriere hugging” jeans. Her outfits were often extravagant, but with a sense of grace that only a woman like her could exude.
In the HBO documentary “Nothing Left Unsaid,” which highlights her extraordinary life, her son described her perfectly: “I’ve always thought of my mom as coming from a time and place that doesn’t exist anymore,” Cooper said. “Like a vanished world.”
To honor the life of such an icon, scroll through some of her most iconic fashion moments below.
