It’s hard to trivialize Cicely Tyson’s influence on fashion. Yesterday the cinema legend’s death at the age of 96 sent shuddering emotions through the entertainment industry, leading several generations of talent to pay their respects. Michelle Obama, Zendaya, Yara Shahidi, Mariah Carey, Oprah, and Tyler Perry were just a few dignitaries who celebrated Tyson’s legacy. As the first Black woman to play the leading role in a television drama and receive an honorary Oscar, she opened multitudinous Hollywood peers’ doors. Still, her presence appeared indistinctly within the world of style. Scouted on Manhattan’s streets at the age of 30, Tyson’s discovery to the big screen began with a shift as a model. In 1955 she quit her secretarial job at the Red Cross to attend Barbara Mae Watson’s modelling school, the first in the nation for African-Americans. In under a year, Tyson became one of the top Black models globally, shooting spreads for magazines like Ebony, Jet, and Vogue.
Tyson boomed in the fashion world. She earned 65 dollars a week at her modelling peak—a substantial amount in 1950s money—and captured other creatives’ attention. En route to a job for African-American lifestyle publication, Our World, she met with actress Evelyn Davis. The latter encouraged Tyson to audition for a role in the independent drama, The Spectrum. The film was shelved, but Tyson emerged as a performer to watch. Elegant, gifted, and arriving on the scene when Black achievement was beginning to be celebrated, her momentum was unstoppable.
From the beginning, Tyson’s model grace and flair resulted in chic moments. Whether she was posing in a white sheath dress in front of Sardi’s in the late ’60s or smiling alongside her A Man Called Adam co-star Sammy Davis Jr. in full Rat Pack finery, Tyson embraced her style and the mood of each era. Cicely Tyson led the revolutionary spirit of the 1960s, and Cicely Tyson’s fashion was expressed through her peasant blouses and flowing caftans; her hair cropped into an alluring afro. Nominated for an Oscar for her 1973’s Sounder performance, she commissioned designer Bill Whitten to create her dream gown, a white and grey silk slip dress with lace detailing and a heart-shaped cutout. With her hair in retro crokinole, finger waves, and fur draped over her shoulder, Tyson delivered Gatsby-glamour while nodding to her Sounder character Rebecca, and the kind of luxury she was never allowed. Liza Minnelli won the Best Actress statue that night, but the evening belonged to Tyson.
A level of intentionality marked Tyson’s wardrobe. Attention was paid to every detail, and her style was complemented by the equally gifted men in her life, particularly husband, Miles Davis. A “certified stepper” in Tyson’s words, he was a fashion icon in his own right and was as deliberate in her outfits as she was. “Wherever the two of us turned up, oh boy would we turn some heads,” Tyson wrote in her 2021 autobiography, Just As I Am. “I beamed at his side, alluring in my couture, showing off looks by style influencers such as Arthur McGee, the first Black designer to ever run a studio. I felt proud to stand alongside Miles, loved folding my silk-gloved hands into his strong ones.”
The collaboration was beautiful, but it represented more than a designer-muse partnership. One of the few famous nonagenarians praised Cicely Tyson for expressive outfits, Tyson was a symbol of abiding style. Every decade Tyson matured, looking for ways to celebrate the Black talent and present herself precisely as she wanted to be seen. Early last year, in one of her final television appearances, she visited The Talk wearing a slim fit leather jacket, cashmere sweater, and diamond chandelier earrings. Simple, elegant, and timelessly chic, Tyson—as always—commanded the screen from start to finish.
SOURCE:https://www.vogue.com/slideshow/cicely-tyson-timeless-style