FASHIONING SOCIETY

Fashioning Society tells the story of the period from the 1860s to the 1970s, a time when a succession of haute couture designers most notably, Charles Worth, Paul Poiret, Coco Chanel, Elsa Schiaparelli, Christian Dior, and Yves Saint Laurent were the arbiters of fashion, and their creations were the weapon of choice for power-seeking members of the aristocracy and upper classes. The book explores the ways in which high fashion designers and their maisons mutually influenced the fine arts and sociological, technological, philosophical, and political developments. The author compares the hundred years of fashion to the current relationship of haute couture with other aspects of world culture and civilization. In addressing the question, What has happened to high fashion design? it presents what students of style and fashion should consider when trying to understand and predict broad trends.