Karen Van Godtsenhoven

Mellissa Huber

This beautifully illustrated book explores the considerable impact of fashions created by and for women by tracing a historical and conceptual lineage of female designers—from unidentified dressmakers in eighteenth-century France to contemporary makers who are leading the direction of fashion today. Stunning new photographs of exceptional garments from the unparalleled collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute complement insightful essays that consider notions of anonymity, visibility, agency, and absence/omission, highlighting celebrated designers and forgotten histories alike to reveal women’s impact on the field of fashion. The publication includes garments from French houses such as Vionnet, Schiaparelli, and Mad Carpentier to American makers like Ann Lowe, Claire McCardell, and Isabel Toledo, along with contemporary designers such as Rei Kawakubo, Iris van Herpen, Simone Rocha, and Anifa Mvuemba. Situating the works within a larger social context, this overdue look at female-led design is essential reading for anyone interested in the history of fashion.

A Lineage of Female Fashion Design

Women Dressing Women

Andrew Bolton

Tadao Ando

Loic Prigent

Amanda Harlech

Kai Marcel

A compelling look at the aesthetic and historical significance of Lagerfeld's work--from his elegantly tailored pieces for Chanel to the witty, playful ensembles that came to define the Lagerfeld brand This publication is the first to present an insightful overview of Karl Lagerfeld's (1933-2019) artistry across his extraordinary 65-year career as a fashion designer and creative visionary--from early work for Balmain and Patou in the 1950s and designs for Chloé and Fendi in the 1960s and 1970s, to his celebrated leadership in the 1980s and beyond at Chanel and with his own label. Inspired by the "line of beauty" theorized by the sixteenth-century English painter William Hogarth, this dazzling publication pursues four "lines"--straight, serpentine, satirical, and explosive--as a means of defining Lagerfeld's unique creative process. An introductory text uses these concepts to explore such topics as the masculine-perceived art of tailoring, the traditionally feminine art of dressmaking, Lagerfeld's use of irony and parody, and the way these three modes converge in surprising, disruptive, and innovative ways. Thematic chapters illustrating the dualities in Lagerfeld's work, an illustrated timeline of his career, and reminiscences from the designer's friends and colleagues accompany new photography of 155 garments, as well as Lagerfeld's illustrations, material samples, personal photographs, and drawings, many never before published. Published by The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Distributed by Yale University Press Exhibition Schedule: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (May 1-July 16, 2023)

A Line of Beauty

Karl Lagerfeld

Jessica Regan

In Pursuit of Fashion presents outstanding works from the greatest private collection of twentieth-century fashion and explores the modern discipline of fashion collecting. This unique group of ensembles and accessories, assembled over several decades by Sandy Schreier, includes many rare and historically significant pieces that define key moments in fashion and features not only iconic works by established designers but also looks by pioneering couturiers rarely represented in museum collections. These remarkable objects, by designers including Gilbert Adrian, Cristobal Balenciaga, Boué Soeurs, Gabrielle Chanel, Christian Dior, Mariano Fortuny y Madrazo, Maria Gallenga, Karl Lagerfeld, Paul Poiret, and Madeleine Vionnet, are illustrated with stunning new photography by fashion photographer Nicholas Alan Cope. Schreier is a pioneer in the field of collecting fashion. Her interest began at a time when collecting and treating these creations as an art form was rare. She amassed a staggering breadth of work that reflects her wide-ranging taste and connoisseurship. An informative introduction discusses the unique evolution of Schreier’s collecting in parallel with a developing field. The book also includes descriptions of more than eighty works, including rare works on paper, as well as a lively interview with Schreier that traces the progress of her collecting from its roots in Detroit to the present day.

The Sandy Schreier Collection

In Pursuit of Fashion

Mellissa Huber

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