Backstage Drama
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

Few people seem to love their jobs as much as nightlife and fashion photographer Patrick McMullan does. Perhaps the reason why this irrepressibly friendly and hardworking native New Yorker has become the best-known party snapper in town (and maybe the world) is that he has such a good time on the job that he makes his subjects feel good, too.
“I always find out people’s names and always stay upbeat,” he said in a phone interview last week as he was on his way to the Hamptons. “That’s the best way to get a great reaction.”
In his new book, “InTents” (power House Books, $75), which will be officially released next Tuesday, the day before New York Fashion Week begins, Mr. McMullan puts that ability to good use. The work celebrates the 10-year anniversary of fashion shows under the Bryant Park tents – the official home of New York Fashion Week.
The book, Mr. McMullan’s fourth, provides a glamorous, exuberant, and funny sneak peek behind the stage of one of the world’s largest spectacles.
Mr. McMullan’s pictures perfectly capture the excitement and giddiness of pre-show preparations as well as the relief and joy when the last outfit is off the runway and the applause begins.
So what is it about fashion week that generates so much excitement? “It’s the joy of seeing the new,” Mr. McMullan said. “It’s fun, fresh, and thrilling. You want to find out what the new colors are this season, who the it-girl is, the latest trends – it’s New York!”
Perhaps it’s the fact that the New York shows are always the first out in the annual fall marathon that continues through London, Milan, and Paris, that makes them particularly festive.
“There’s a ‘back to school’ feeling,” Mr. McMullan said. “You come back from vacation and you’re happy to see everyone again.” This feeling of a cozy, close-knit community is well captured in “InTents.” In a business known for its pressure, backstabbing, and competition, Mr. McMullan manages to bring out the warmest and most positive moments.
His photographs are full of affection, playfulness, and humor. The models seem to love posing for Mr. McMullan as much as he loves shooting them. “When somebody is wearing a great outfit, they know it,” he said.
There are sultry pictures of a pre-Hollywood Milla Jovovich wearing electric-blue eyeshadow and an oversized wig, shots of a young Kimora Lee looking regal on the runway, and photos of a young model named Ashton Kutcher clowning around backstage. “I always knew he would become a star,” said Mr. McMullan. But his favorite picture in the book is of a group of technicians posing in hefty bags during a thunderstorm.
One of the most entertaining aspects of “InTents” is watching how rapidly fashion changes over the course of a decade. The outfits from 1994 seem impossibly clownish and unbecoming, and one begins to suspect that today’s fashion will look equally silly 10 years from now.
The book also chronicles the ever-changing line-up of supermodels. From the statuesque and striking early 1990s icons such as Linda Evangelista and Veronica Webb to the fresh and girlish faces of Dewi Driegen and Natalia Vodianova, Mr. McMullan has documented every beauty ideal over the past decade.
“You always know who the new girl of the season is,” Mr. McMullan said. “A good model is naturally good at posing. Even if she’s working her first fashion show, she has a certain pizzazz and charisma.”
As fabulous and frivolous as the photographs in “InTents” may look, there is a lot of hard work behind them. Mr. McMullan’s average workday during fashion week begins at 9 a.m. and ends at 1 a.m. He covers at least 10 shows a day as well as a few parties every night. And that’s just the beginning of the process. “Most of the work is in the editing,” Mr. Mc-Mullan explained. “I take 500 to 1,000 pictures at every event.”
One of the occasions where he is sure to snap up a storm is at his own party on September 7. Saks Fifth Avenue and Bryant Park organizers 7th on Sixth have joined forces to kick off fashion week with a huge celebration for “InTents” and Mr. McMullan. (7th on Sixth executive director, Fern Mallis, wrote the introduction to “InTents,” which also has a forward by Katie Couric.)
The event is by invitation only, but that doesn’t mean that regular New Yorkers can’t enjoy it. The best thing about Mr. McMullan’s work is that you don’t have to be on the guest list for the party – he takes you there anyway.