Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg, 1974.Photo: Gilbert Giribaldi / Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
The Côte d’Azur, a little piece of paradise where the golden sun hits waters of an indescribable blue, was made fashionable in the interwar period by American expatriates, Gerald and Sara Murphy, and their circle of friends who included Pablo Picasso, F Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, and various members of the Ballets Russes. Filmdom claimed a spot in the South of France in the late 1940s with the establishment of what is now the Cannes Film Festival, where stars twinkle in the sky and red carpet.
Brigitte Bardot, 1955. Photo: Zola Bela / Daily Mirror / Mirrorpix via Getty Images
Celebrities… they’re not just like us, but even A-listers are susceptible to the pull of sand and sea – whether for pleasure, publicity or a combination of the two. When I hear the word “Cannes”, the first image that comes to mind is an 18-year-old Brigitte Bardot charming the press in a teeny-weeny two-piece. In a case of incredible synchronicity, the bikini and the film festival both debuted in 1946. But hers isn’t the only head-turning, off-the-carpet look to admire. The selection of archival images below offers a study in casual seaside chic. Based on them, an imaginary packing list would include some denim, a bathing suit and sandals, straw hat and bag, and a sweater for breezy days. Madras might be optional, but sunscreen’s a must.
The (Re) Birth of Venus
Brigitte Bardot in a teeny bikini at her first Cannes Film Festival, 1953.Photo: Watford / Mirrorpix via Getty Images
Après Art, Film
Foujita painting Keiko Kishi, star of Snow Country, on the beach at Cannes, 1958.Photo: Keystone / Hulton Archive / Getty Images
Pablo Picasso at the Cannes Film Festival, 1957. Photo: Bob Hope / Daily Mirror / Mirrorpix via Getty Images
A Day at the Beach
Actors Dominique Wilms and Pablito Calvo of Miracle of Marcelino, 1955. Photo: Keystone-France / Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images
Leslie Carron, 1953.Photo: Watford / Mirrorpix via Getty Images
Summer Dress-ing
Actors Nanette Senghor and Iba Gueye at Cannes, 1962.Photo by Keystone-France / Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
Mona Doll in a pretty summer dress, 1959.Photo: Daniel Fallot / INA via Getty Images
Tee Time
Dustin Hoffman and Anne Byrne, 1975.Photo: AFP via Getty Images
Geraldine Danon, 1984. Photo by Jean-Marc Zaorski / Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
Maria Schneider, 1975. Photo: Bertrand Laforet / Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
Pas de deux
Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg, 1974.Photo: Gilbert Giribaldi / Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
Actors André Dussolier and Marthe Keller, 1975.Photo: Michel Ginfray / Gamma-Rapho via Getty Image
Laird Borrelli-Persson is a senior archive editor at vogue.com.
She holds a Bachelor's degree from Boston College where she studied English. She later obtained her Master's degree from the Fashion Institute of Technology where she studied fashion history and museum studies.
