Stunning Portraits of Dolores del Rio Taken by Ruth Harriet Louise, 1927

Dolores del Río appeared in The Trail of ’98 (1928), an MGM silent adventure-drama about the Klondike Gold Rush of 1898. Directed by Clarence Brown, the film was known for its epic scale, dangerous stunts, and location shooting in harsh winter conditions in California’s Sierra Nevada and in Alaska.

In the movie, Dolores played Berna, a refined young woman who travels to the Klondike in search of a better life, becoming involved in romance and peril along the way. This was one of her early Hollywood roles, coming just a few years after her debut in Joanna (1925).

Here, a very young and beautiful Dolores del Rio photographed by Ruth Harriet Louise in 1927 for her only MGM silent film, The Trail of ‘98.

Jean Moral: The Pioneer of Spontaneous Elegance

Jean Moral (1906–1999) was a visionary French photographer and illustrator who fundamentally transformed the aesthetics of fashion photography in the 1930s.

Moving away from the rigid, artificial poses typical of the era’s studios, Moral took his models, most notably his wife and muse, Juliette, into the natural light of the streets, beaches, and mountain slopes. His work, frequently published in prestigious magazines like Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue, was characterized by a sense of dynamic spontaneity and “joie de vivre.” He captured women in motion: walking, laughing, and embracing a modern, athletic lifestyle that reflected the shifting social roles of the time.

Moral’s unique “eye” combined the precision of a graphic designer with the freedom of a photojournalist, creating iconic black-and-white compositions that celebrated both the elegance of haute couture and the uninhibited spirit of the modern woman.

Fashion study by Jean Moral for Harper's Bazaar, 1935

“Café Anglais,” Dior’s most successful design for Piguet, photo by Jean Moral, Harper’s Bazaar, March 1, 1939

Model in raincoat by Schiaparelli, photo by Jean Moral, Paris, Harper's Bazaar, October 1939

Model in dark blue wool skirt with a red wool jacket and dark blue chiffon blouse, the cane covered in the same red as the jacket by Lucien Lelong, photo by Jean Moral, Harper's Bazaar, March 1940

Model in loose, wool cream topcoat by Balenciaga, photo by Jean Moral, Harper's Bazaar, March 1940

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Kate Moss: The Lost Polaroids in 1991 and Found Again in 2020

In 1991, Michel Haddi photographed Kate Moss in a quiet London studio for what was meant to be a GQ feature. The shoot wasn’t about glamour or elaborate styling; it was stripped down, shot on Polaroids that embraced imperfection and immediacy. Moss moved naturally in front of the camera, her expressions shifting between playful and reflective, never forced.

Having met Moss at the Cannes Film Festival while she was dating Hollywood actor Johnny Depp, Haddi compared her to “the mermaid of Copenhagen” – a nod to the famous bronze statue by Edvard Eriksen that sits in the harbour of Nyhavn, Copenhagen.

“I said: ‘Oh my God, this girl is like a dream,’… she doesn’t care about nothing and she’s so beautiful,” he said. “This was a girl that at the time was a big star then, but she said: ‘Your photo work of Johnny is so beautiful. I will love that if you could do some like that of me.’ I did some photographs of her there and then.”

The resulting images weren’t polished editorial shots but raw and unguarded moments. There was something magnetic about the way she seemed to float between being present and lost in her own world, an effortless quality that didn’t need staging.

In 2020, while clearing out a storage space in Venice Beach, Haddi unearthed a cache of Polaroids, contact sheets, and snapshots he had taken of Moss from his 1991 British GQ shoot. These were not formal editorial shots but intimate, spontaneous captures from early in her career.

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Historical Photos of Coal Mines Kids Taken by Lewis Hine in the United States From the Early 20th Century

Lewis Hine was a teacher and photographer who, in the early 20th century, used his camera as a tool for social reform. Working for the National Child Labor Committee (NCLC) between 1908 and 1924, Hine traveled across the United States to document the harsh conditions of child labor. One of his most powerful series of photographs focused on “breaker boys” in coal mines, particularly in Pennsylvania.

In the early 1900s, thousands of children, some as young as eight or nine, worked in the coal industry. While the law often prohibited young children from working underground, they were frequently employed in the “breakers.” Their task was to sit on wooden boards over a conveyor belt or chute filled with rushing coal. As the coal moved past, the boys had to pick out pieces of slate, rock, and other impurities by hand.

The boys worked ten to twelve hours a day in cramped, hunched-over positions. The dust was so thick they could barely see, and many developed chronic coughs or “black lung” early in life. The work was incredibly dangerous. Boys often lost fingers to the fast-moving machinery, and some were even crushed to death if they fell into the chutes. Their hands were often covered in “red coal,” cuts and abrasions from the sharp slate.

Hine often had to use deception to gain access to these sites. He would disguise himself as a fire inspector, a postcard vendor, or a machinery salesman to get past foremen who didn’t want the public to see the children. Once inside, he would quickly take photos and scribble notes on pieces of paper hidden in his pockets. He recorded the children’s ages (often lied about by parents or employers), their heights, and how long they had been working.

Hine called his work “photo-interpretation.” He believed that if the American public could see the faces of the children whose childhoods were being traded for cheap coal and textiles, they would demand change. His photographs became the visual evidence needed to sway public opinion and were instrumental in the eventual passage of the Keating-Owen Act of 1916 and, later, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, which effectively ended child labor in the United States.

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Auguste Toulmouche: The Painter of Parisian Elegance

Auguste Toulmouche (1829–1890) was a prominent French painter of the Academic Realist school, best known for his exquisite genre paintings of upper-middle-class Parisian women.

A student of the famous Charles Gleyre, Toulmouche became a sensation during the Second French Empire, earning the patronage of Emperor Napoleon III and Empress Eugénie. His work is characterized by a meticulous attention to detail, particularly in the rendering of opulent fabrics like silk, satin, and lace, which earned his subjects the nickname “Toulmouche’s delicious dolls” from critics like Émile Zola.

While his paintings often depicted quiet, domestic moments, such as a woman reading a letter or admiring herself in a mirror, they captured the sophisticated psychological state of the 19th-century bourgeoisie.

Dolce far niente

Mother and Daughter Reading

A Bedtime Prayer

A Classical Courtship

A Fine Scent

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John Lennon Shaved His Hair to Go to Watergate Hearings in Washington D.C., June 1973

John Lennon had a completely shaved head when he attended the Watergate hearings in Washington D.C. on June 27, 1973. He was present as an observer, amidst a crowd of officials and spectators.

However, the shaving of his head was likely not specifically for the hearings, but rather part of a personal decision and possibly related to his ongoing immigration issues and a previous peace campaign. He had shaved his head earlier in June 1973, and was photographed with the new look at various events around that time, including the hearings. At the hearing, he told reporters: “I have my brown curls chopped off every two years, and I had a haircut again only two weeks ago.”

At the time, the Nixon administration was actively trying to deport Lennon, citing a 1968 cannabis conviction in the UK. Appearing with a clean-cut, short-haired look was a stark departure from the “long-haired hippie” image Nixon’s administration used to characterize him as a “dangerous alien.”

It was later revealed that John Lennon was a target of FBI surveillance because of his anti-war activism. When asked about being on a “political enemies” list at the hearing, Lennon dryly remarked, “We’re somewhere in the middle... Nobody has asked us to take sides.”

This was the second time Lennon had shaved his head in the early 1970s; the first was in January 1970 with Yoko Ono as a “peace campaign” statement.

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Simone Signoret: The Soul of French Cinema

Simone Signoret (1921–1985) was one of the most revered and intellectually formidable actresses in the history of world cinema. Unlike many of her contemporaries who prioritized Hollywood glamour, she was celebrated for her earthy realism, profound emotional depth, and refusal to hide the natural aging process.

Signoret became the first French person to win an Academy Award for her heart-wrenching performance in the 1959 British film Room at the Top. Throughout her career, she portrayed complex, resilient women, often burdened by life’s hardships but possessing an unbreakable dignity.

Beyond her artistic achievements, Signoret was a prominent social activist and intellectual, forming one half of France’s most famous power couple with her husband, Yves Montand. With her smoky voice and penetrating gaze, she remains an enduring icon of “la maturité,” proving that a woman’s true beauty lies in her experiences, her intelligence, and her unwavering authenticity.

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