Mehemed Fehmy Agha

Dr. Mehemed Fehmy Agha (Mykolayiv, 1896 - Pennsylvania, 1978) was a Russian-born Turkish designer, art director, and pioneer of modern American publishing. He was instrumental in defining the role of the magazine art director and delivering the full force of European avant garde experimentation to the pages of Vogue, Vanity Fair, and House & Garden, the Condé Nast publishing company's flagship magazines in the United States. §

Agha was born in the Russian Empire (now Ukraine) to a family of Turkish descent. His education ranged broadly from a degree in economics from the Emperor Peter the Great Polytechnic Institute in Kiev to a degree in Oriental languages in Paris. He then pursued training in the arts, and achieved proficiencies in photography, typography, and the sciences.

In 1928 he became the art director of Vogue Berlin. Agha quickly rose to prominence at the Paris and Berlin offices of Vogue. His inventive layouts came to the attention of Condé Montrose Nast himself who persuaded Agha to take over the art direction of the American edition of Vogue in 1929. When Dr. Mehemed Fehmy Agha arrived at Vogue's New York City offices in 1929, he ignited a design revolution when he revamped the magazine—as well as its sister publications Vanity Fair and House & Garden.

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