Overview
This gorgeously illustrated volume not only offers a tour through the fascinating history of silk but also a glimpse into the future, when imaginative designers and textile producers will be changing the boundaries of what is possible with this extraordinary material. Textile expert Mary Schoeser presents an authoritative account of the development of silk, its properties and practical uses, and its role in some of the greatest achievements in the history of fashion design. Silk is magical. Made by worms, it is able to absorb up to thirty times its weight in water, it is warmer than wool, and it is unsurpassed for beauty and touch. Schoeser focuses keen attention on silk's evolution as a symbol of status and substance, then traces its central function in 19th- and 20th-century glamour, expressed through the work of designers from Christian Dior to Yves Saint Laurent, Balenciaga to Emmanuel Ungaro. Schoeser also examines the innovative use of silk by today's cutting-edge designers, among them Alexander McQueen, Issey Miyake, and John Galliano of Dior. She concludes with a detailed investigation of new silk technologies and how they continue to extend both the physical properties of silk and the possibilities for creative design.
Full Product Details
Author: Mary Schoeser
Publisher: Yale University Press
Imprint: Yale University Press
Edition: Annotated edition
Dimensions:
Width: 24.10cm
, Height: 2.60cm
, Length: 27.90cm
Weight: 1.624kg
ISBN: 9780300117417
ISBN 10: 0300117418
Pages: 256
Publication Date: 01 April 2007
Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
General/trade
,
Professional & Vocational
,
General
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Out of Print
Availability: In Print
Limited stock is available. It will be ordered for you and shipped pending supplier's limited stock.
Reviews
A volume that combines an illuminating text with carefully chosen, extravagant illustrations that support and enhance the written word. -Pamela A. Parmal, Winterthur Portfolio -- Pamela A. Parmal Winterthur Portfolio (12/01/2008)
""A volume that combines an illuminating text with carefully chosen, extravagant illustrations that support and enhance the written word.""--Pamela A./i>--Pamela A. Parmal""Winterthur Portfolio"" (12/01/2008)
"""A volume that combines an illuminating text with carefully chosen, extravagant illustrations that support and enhance the written word.""--Pamela A./i>--Pamela A. Parmal""Winterthur Portfolio"" (12/01/2008)"
Author Information
Mary Schoeser is senior research fellow in fahion/textiles at Central St. Martin's College of Art & Design in London. She has served as historic textiles advisor to English Heritage and The Metropolitan Museum of Art and was recently involved in the restoration of the Charles Rennie Mackintosh house in Northampton, England. Among her many books is World Textiles: A Concise History.
