London, Lord Snowdon's First Book; Signed by Him
[Signed by Lord Snowdon] Armstrong Jones, Tony. London. First English Edition. 1958. Book is in very good condition; dust jacket is in very good minus condition—jacket shows repaired tear to front cover. Book is warmly inscribed to a friend named Dennis (last name illegible). Also enclosed is handwritten note from Snowdon written on his 22 Launceston Place stationery.
This is Lord Snowdon’s first book. It was published two years prior to his marriage to Princess Margaret. Though the royal connection amplified his career, this book shows Armstrong Jones was already on his way. Only twenty-seven, he was a rising star at British Vogue. Subjects depict the last remaining Edwardians as they collide with post-World War II austerity and mid-century modernity. The calm before the storm of Cool Britannia, one image captures nannies pushing prams through Hyde Park is so timeless it could just have easily been taken a century earlier.
“It’s no good saying ‘hold it’ to a moment in real life. Like trying to hold a breath, you find you’ve lost it.”
--Tony Armstrong Jones