Truly so sad to hear the news about André Leon Talley, an unparalleled chronicler of beautiful things, a genuine trailblazer, and one of the greatest fashion writers to ever do it. Back in 2016, he was the first person I ever interviewed, and it remains my favourite interview I’ve ever done. I travelled up to his home in White Plains with @victoriahelyhutchinson for @buffalozine on a baking hot July day where André was stationed on his porch in a custom brocaded silk Tom Ford cape with a fur trim and gold Gucci slides, sipping an enormous iced tea from Dunkin’ Donuts. We Skyped his friend Gloria von Thurn und Taxis—I remember André describing me to her as sharing the complexion of Marie Antoinette in a Vigée Le Brun painting he’d seen recently at the Met—and they reminisced on their wild nights out together with Karl in Paris or with Keith Haring at Gloria’s schloss in Bavaria. I also remember André going on a long monologue about how Gloria should be buying Giottos. “Everyone should own a Giotto!” he said, to which she replied: “André, darling, I don’t think they’re really for sale.” Afterwards, he showed me some of his Warhols and cheekily gossiped about Tom Ford having spent $50 million on his Beverly Hills mansion. But behind all the fun and frivolity lay the most profound knowledge about fashion history—he could even remember outfits Gloria had worn 30 years before down to the last button—and an unexpected kindness too. I spent most of the journey back to New York terrified that I’d done a terrible job of my first ever interview, but after he received a copy of the issue he sent me the kindest and most encouraging email. I’ve always treasured that message, and I’m sure it was pretty much the confidence boost I needed to believe that a career in magazines was something viable. I know there’s nothing tackier than making someone’s passing all about you, but I just wanted to share the story of having met one of my biggest inspirations—he was a force of nature and a one-of-a-kind personality in an industry where those kinds of distinctive voices feel like they’re disappearing by the day. RIP to a legend ❤️