Schiaparelli: Fashion Becomes Art

<P><B>This lavishly illustrated book explores the origins and legacy of one of fashion's greatest innovators</B></P><P>'Elsa Schiaparelli was more than a dressmaker; she was an image maker' -Daniel Roseberry</P><P>Elsa Schiaparelli sent shockwaves through the fashion establishment with her witty, ingenious, and artful designs. Lauded by Cristóbal Balenciaga as the 'only real artist in couture' she infused her collections with Surrealism and collaborated on pieces with contemporaries from the art world including Man Ray, Jean Cocteau, Salvador Dalí, and Alberto Giacometti.</P><P>Her garments still look fresh today and, though provocative at the time, were eminently wearable, attracting many society and celebrity clients.</P><P>She caused a stir at Wimbledon by sending Lilí Álvarez to the 1931 tennis tournament in culottes; she clothed Amy Johnson for her first solo flight to Cape Town; her lobster dress made it into Wallis Simpson's trousseau, and she counted as fans Lauren Bacall, Marlene Dietrich, and Josephine Baker.</P><P>Her designs appeared on the stage in productions by Ivor Novello, Nöel Coward, and Jean-Paul Sartre, and she costumed over 30 films. Today, Schiaparelli's visual vocabulary runs through Daniel Roseberry's designs for Maison Schiaparelli like a shocking pink thread.</P><P>Richly illustrated throughout, the book traces Schiaparelli's enduring influence on fashion and visual culture, from the interwar years to the present day.</P>