Defining design of the 20th and 21st centuries
From Azzedine Alaïa, Cristóbal Balenciaga, and Coco Chanel to Alexander McQueen, Yves Saint Laurent, and
Vivienne Westwood,
a century’s worth of fashion greats from the permanent collection of
The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City are celebrated in this fresh edition of Fashion Designers A–Z.
This accessibly priced and updated collection features photographs of hundreds of garmentsselected from the Museum’s permanent collection. From an exquisitely embroidered velvet evening gown to Mondrian-style minimalist chic, each chosen piece is selected not only for its beauty but for its representative value, distilling the
unique philosophy and aesthetics of each of the featured designers.
Texts by the museum’s curators explain why each designer is important in fashion history and what is special about the garments featured, complemented by drawn portraits by
Robert Nippoldt. In her introductory essay, director and chief curator
Valerie Steele writes about
the rise of the fashion museum, and the emergence of the fashion exhibition as a popular and controversial phenomenon.
The editor and author
Valerie Steele is director and chief curator of The Museum at FIT and founding editor of Fashion Theory. Described in The Washington Post as one of “fashion’s brainiest women” and by Suzy Menkes as “the Freud of fashion,” Steele combines serious scholarship (and a Yale Ph.D.) with a rare ability to communicate with general audiences. As author, curator, editor, and public intellectual, Steele has been instrumental in creating the modern field of fashion studies.
The contributing author
Unquestionably a leader in the global fashion press, Suzy Menkes is International Vogue Editor at Condé Nast International. Her work appears on the websites of 23 international editions of Vogue in 16 languages. She is also a leading Instagram influencer. Among the world’s most influential fashion critics, she is an officer of the Order of the British Empire as well as a chevalier of the Légion d’Honneur. She lives and works in London and Paris. @SuzyMenkesVogue
The illustrator
Robert Nippoldt is a German graphic designer, illustrator, and book artist. He is best known for his award-winning books Gangster, Jazz and Hollywood about America in the 1920s and 1930s. His studio is located at the very hip old depot of Muenster.
Fashion Designers A-Z. 40th Ed.
Hardcover, 6.1 x 8.5 in., 3.23 lb, 512 pages
ISBN 978-3-8365-8756-3
Edition: English
ISBN 978-3-8365-8755-6
Edition: French
ISBN 978-3-8365-8757-0
Edition: Spanish
