Pamela Parmal

Books about fashion are always a bit of a chancy endeavor; photographs and text can never fully replicate the artistry of an actual garment, and yet I can never resist diving in to explore one of my favourite artistic outlets in a slightly more accessible format than the atelier price tags. This volume expouses to be an exploration of Parisian style, aiming to prove true (once again) that Paris is the unequivocal capital of the fashion world. While I may agree with the authors’ thesis, show more their argument and citations are somewhat questionable. The book begins with a full treatise on the history of French fashion, which I could not bear to be bored by - skipping lightly along past the essay on haute couture and rive gauche (worth a glance, but not much more) and diving straight into the specifics of the design maisons. Each section had an accessible narrative on each designer, accompanied by a lovely arrangement of photographs that showcased the runway shows, manequinned garments, and editorial content - all of which were lovely to explore. Unfortunately, the authors’ selection of designers was a bit baffling and left me very much wanting more. Nowhere did Yves Saint Laurent get the credit he was due, nor did many of the other French designers who broke the mold; and yet they included Dutch, Japanese, Italian, and British designers?! Sure, all of these artists deserve their place on the fashion stage, but regular shows in Paris does not a Parisian designer make! If I hadn’t enjoyed getting to know each of these designers (and getting further inspiration to explore their work in more detail), I would have been rightly quite miffed by the finale of this book. If you want to do a book celebrating a random selection of fashion designers, maybe just own up to it from the outset - don’t promise me Paris unless you’re going to deliver! show less

Educational background on samplers from this book from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Full color book that accompanoes the exhibit, "Common Threads: A Showcase of Samplers" in 2000.

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