FASHION FIX
Latest from the style frontlines
Curl up with a good book this Christmas. Fashionistas will have fun leafing through these fabulous titles, as selected by Nina Hidayat
MONSIEUR DIOR: ONCE UPON A TIME BY NATASHA FRASER-CAVASSONI Christian Dior
had only 10 years ( 1952-1962) in the fashion house he built, but his influence is still as strong today as it was during his “divine decade”. Natasha Fraser-Cavassoni, who previously worked on Dior Glamour, a photo book on Dior’s extensive activities as a thriving fashion house in a time when fashion was a means of celebrating the end of World War II. Dior was best known for popularising the New Look, a silhouette that accentuates a woman’s curves.
“This book was a joy to work on because it captures what was a very happy time for so many people. I interviewed so many fascinating people who attested to this, like actress Lauren Bacall, who described it as a magical era,” says Fraser-Cavassoni. The author interviewed dozens of people who knew Dior, including designer Pierre Cardin and former Women’s Wear Daily Editor John Fairchild. Images by reputable photographers including Cecil Beaton and Henri Cartier-Bresson added to the life-like portrayal of the icon that is Christian Dior.
MADEMOISELLE: COCO CHANEL AND THE PULSE OF HISTORY BY RHONDA K. GARELICK
“Whether we know it or not, we are all now wearing Chanel’s distillation of European history,” reads a line from the book. Garelick is a professor at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. The fact explains why the book links fashion to Fascism and other political ideologies throughout Coco Chanel’s 60 years in fashion.
As a designer, one of Coco Chanel’s strongest qualities is indeed her sensitivity towards the social phenomena around her, which she turned into sartorial inspirations. Perhaps the most celebrated example would be Chanel’s dismissal of the body-restricting corset in womenswear. Instead, she introduced the practical Little Black Dress in the 1920s.
The book also discusses the height of Chanel’s career in the 1930s and 40s, a time that has been described as “Chanelism”. A different take of the usual fairy tale-like angle of the life of Coco Chanel, the book is more of a social critic than a mere fashion fable.
YVES SAINT LAURENT BY ROXANNE LOWIT
This photo book might have just hit the newsstand, but it had been in the works for 24 years. Roxanne Lowit has compiled photographs of one of the most celebrated designers of all time, from the perspective of a close friend. “She even managed to capture him smiling on several different occasions,” says Women’s Wear Daily of Lowit’s images of the brooding designer.
“I love Yves Saint Laurent,” the New York photographer, who was on first name term with the designer, says. “His name is synonymous with style, elegance, and high fashion. I love that I met him on top of the Eiffel Tower. I love that I always felt so welcomed backstage. I love that he always had such a passion for his work.”
Pierre Bergé, co-founder of the Yves Saint Laurent Couture House, wrote the foreword for the book. It also features the comments of Saint Laurent muses and admirers, including Catherine Deneuve, Lucie de la Falaise, Betty Catroux, Jacqueline de Ribes, Andre Leon Talley and Valerie Steele. Following two Saint Laurent biopics that came out this year ( Yves Saint Laurent by Jalil Lespert and Saint Laurent by Bertrand Brunello), this truly is a Saint Laurent year.