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The Three-Piece Suit and Modern Masculinityby David Kuchta
University of California Press 2002; US$ 15.95In 1666, King Charles II felt it necessary to reform Englishmen's dress by introducing a fashion that developed into the three-piece suit. We learn what inspired this royal revolution in masculine attire--and the reasons for its remarkable longevity--in David Kuchta's engaging and handsomely illustrated account. Between 1550 and 1850, Kuchta says, English upper- and middle-class men understood their authority to be based in part upon the display of masculine character: how they presented themselves in public and demonstrated their masculinity helped define their political legitimacy, moral authority, and economic utility. Much has been written about the ways political culture, religion, and economic theory helped shape ideals and practices... more...
The Global Circulation of African Fashionby Leslie W. Rabine
Berg Publishers 2002; US$ 109.95Transnational movements of people, cultural objects, images and identities have played a vital role in creating an informal global network for African fashion - from clothing designers and tailors to dyers and jewellery makers. This book traces the c hanging meanings, aesthetics and histories of the thriving informal African fashion network through its multicultural cross-roads of Los Angeles, Kenya and Senegal. In African communities, designers compete with each other to survive and often t ravel long distances in search of new markets. Such competition and bridging of cultures fuels creativity and innovation. From adapting western fashion magazines to combining ?ethnic? designs with dramatic new colours and techniques, artisans weave a... more...
Nazi Chic?by Irene Guenther
Berg Publishers 2004; US$ 120.95This is the first book in English to deal comprehensively with German fashion from World War I through to the end of the Third Reich. It explores the failed attempt by the Nazi state to construct a female image that would mirror official gender polic ies, inculcate feelings of national pride, promote a German victory on the fashion runways of Europe and support a Nazi-controlled European fashion industry. Not only was fashion one of the countrys largest industries throughout the interwar period, but German women ranked among the most elegantly dressed in all of Europe. While exploding the cultural stereotype of the German woman as either a Brunhilde in uniform or a chubby farmers wife, the author reveals the often heated debates surrounding... more...
Fashioning Africaby Jean Allman
Indiana University Press 2004; US$ 17.55Everywhere in the world there is a close connection between the clothes we wear and our political expression. To date, few scholars have explored what clothing means in 20th-century Africa and the diaspora. In Fashioning Africa, an international group of anthropologists, historians, and art historians bring rich and diverse perspectives to this fascinating topic. From clothing as an expression of freedom in early colonial Zanzibar to Somali women's headcovering in inner-city Minneapolis, these essays explore the power of dress in African and pan-African settings. Nationalist and diasporic identities, as well as their histories and ... more...
Arab dressby Y.K. Stillman; N.A. Stillman
BRILL 2003; US$ 181.00A scholar of history, Near Eastern languages, and women's studies (U. of Oklahoma), Yedida (1946-98) was considered an expert on the history of clothing of the Arab world, both Muslim and Jewish, from medieval to modern times. This book was over three-quarters finished when she died, and her partner and collaborator Norman (history, U. of Oklahoma) more...
Mourning Dressby Lou Taylor
Taylor & Francis 2009; US$ 41.95First published in 1983, Mourning Dress chronicles the development of European and American mourning dress and etiquette from the middle ages to the present day, highlighting similarities and differences in practices between the different social strata. The result is a book which is not only of major importance to students of the history of dress but also to anyone who enjoys social history. . more...
Londonby Alistair O'Neill
Reaktion Books 2007; US$ 28.95A fascinating look at style and urbanism, London - after a Fashion offers an intriguing reconsideration of the role of fashion in city life and fills in long overlooked gaps in the history of London and modern design. more...
Elizabethan Englandby Kathy Elgin
Infobase Publishing 2009; US$ 42.00Focusing on the Elizabethan era in England, a period from about 1550 to 1603, this title shows various examples of the fascinating clothing worn by everyone from the noblemen and middle classes to the countryfolk and military men. England during the time of Queen Elizabeth I is well-known to students as the time of Shakespeare's plays and other courtly drama. Photographs and illustrations from popular plays and movies show vivid examples of Elizabethan dress, which will assist students who are studying the common costumes and accessories of the time. more...
The Civil Warby Karen Taschek
Infobase Publishing 2009; US$ 42.00During the bloodiest conflict the United States has ever known, the clothing of men, women, and children changed little as the country was consumed by war. Complete with ample sidebars, "The Civil War" gives readers the necessary background about this tumultuous time in American history so they can understand how clothing, from hooped skirts to army uniforms, differed by region and by class. Photographs from movies, including "Gone with the Wind", illustrate various popular types of clothing worn.The chapters include: War Begins, Antebellum and Civil War Dress: Women, Antebellum and Civil War Dress: Men and Children, Southern Uniforms, Northern Uniforms, Slaves' Clothes, The Blockade of the South, and The North's... more...
The 1990sby Anne McEvoy
Infobase Publishing 2007; US$ 42.00From silk walking shorts to bike leathers to layered minidresses to stretch-velvet jump suits, the 1990s represented a period of fun, innovative clothing styles that could be sold at affordable prices for the average person. This volume recounts the history of fashion as it threaded its way through this exciting era. more...









