This eponymous 40th anniversary book sits as the crown jewel in Fred’s makeshift coffee table. At an impressive 11 1/2” x 15”, this profound volume shares intimate reflections of Ralph Lauren’s life and work, featuring more than 700 hand picked photographs. The man is a dreamer—a storyteller. When he began designing menswear his inspiration came from old yearbooks and images of students from Princeton, Harvard and Yale. What he designed in 1967 isn’t old, and yet what he’s creating in 2010 isn’t new. And therein lies the beauty of the prep aesthetic. The clothes are as timeless as the vision behind them...
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Even though we catch our reflection out of the corner of our eye, we're almost mistaken for what decade it is. The Seth Thomas clock isn’t much help. Newspaper articles and photographs from Gant's manufacturing facilities in New Haven from the 1950s—1970s plaster the walls. We're in the dressing room, modeled after the foreman’s office of Bernard Gant, of the new Gant Rugger shop on Bleecker St. A navy/red striped polo, madras sport shirt and heritage-rich blue oxford pullover haphazardly drape over the office chair. Gary’s silhouette knocks on the door to see how we're doing. He's astute yet nonchalant. He runs off to grab a different size for us.
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