It being that special something that triggers a memory, an emotion, or a connection. Inspiration works much the same way; it can come from anywhere, but it can’t be manufactured. It must be discovered.

When making collections, designers often turn to art, film, and literature as jumping-off points. Fairy tales, for example, have informed fashion shoots, some of which are collected in Vogue: Fantasy & Fashion. But Little Red Riding Hood, renegade princesses, and latter-day Joan of Arcs aren’t only to be found on the magazine’s glossy pages. Season after season, the runway is populated with Dickens heroines and royals, as well as more outré imaginings, like femme fleurs and mystical creatures.

What’s the point of these fantasies, some more viable as “real” clothes than others? Fantasy offers possibilities and sparks the imagination, which has no limits. Here, some flights of fancy from the Vogue Runway archive. Dream on.

Dreamers



Queen for a Day



Knights in Shining Armor



Forest Fantasies



Mysterious Strangers



Sisters of Mercy



The Decameron Dames



Warrior Women



Femme Fleurs



Pomp and Circumstance



Dickens Characters



Degas Dancers



Dress-Up Dolls



Pierrot



Marie-Antoinette



Mighty Roses



Riding Hood



Swans



Toy Soldiers

                        

Rebel Princesses



The Future Is Female



A Flight of Fancy