The artistic vision of Grace Coddington

I think Anna and Grace shared a very symbiotic relationship, and they require each other to succeed. I think left to her own devices, Grace would pursue the art of fashion, creating images that were pleasing and paying tribute to the designers and models, but it would lack the 'wearability' and accessibility that Anna keeps mentioning. If Grace didn't have Anna to reign her in, she would veer off into creating fashion art. Vogue would become an art book, which it is not.

Vogue is in the business of marketing, and Anna understands that. She's responsible for editing a magazine that everyday women, and not just artists and photographers, would want to read. Grace's images were outstanding and beautiful, but the ones that were cut from the magazine sold a beautiful image, and not the garments within them. It's definitely a tough call, but a necessary one. Anna is the only one who can make that call, because beyond Grace, Vogue is staffed with bobblehead yes-men (Darko was ridiculous. I'd fire him immediately).

I think Grace and Anna understand this relationship, and while it can be a brutal process, it is a necessary process. If Grace is really that unhappy about her vision being compromised, then she can likely easily join the ranks of a Testino or Demarchelier. But she's in the magazine business, not the photography business.

It's a very similar relationship between a film director and a studio exec, one is about vision and story, and the other is about bringing in an audience. Compromise has to happen for either one to succeed.

"We can never achieve peace by killing each other's children."