'A sumptuous illustrated catalog.' Suzy Menkes, International Herald Tribune Serge Diaghilev (1872 — 1929) was an extraordinarily gifted impresario, curator, director and animator of the arts. He was perfectly at home driving the wave of creative energy that pushed theatrical performance to the cutting edge of cultural activity in the early twentieth century. A roll call of the Ballets Russes' collaborators and circle bears witness to their impact on modernism and later twentieth-century art; Picasso, Stravinsky, Nijinsky, Bakst, Goncharova, Matisse, Chanel, Prokofiev, Man Ray and Cocteau all worked with Diaghilev — and their work is discussed and illustrated here. This beautiful book draws on new research to explore Diaghilev's life, work and cultural milieu. It pulls together the music, pictures, costumes, archives and art of the Ballets Russes to illustrate Diaghilev's working process, accomplishments and society.

Fashion is a big bubble, and sometimes I feel like popping it. Alexander McQueen, 2009 This definitive publication on Alexander McQueen (1969 — 2010) invites you into the creative mind of one of Britain's most brilliant, daring and provocative designers. Accompanying the V&A's landmark exhibition Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty, this comprehensive catalogue features 28 ground-breaking essays from expert fashion commentators and cultural scholars which examine the richness and complexity of McQueen's visionary fashion. The publication includes over 440 striking images, from intimate backstage portraits and editorials by leading fashion photographers to previously unpublished sketches and research boards from the McQueen archive. At the centre of the book is a Cabinet of Curiosities gatefold with a specially commissioned photo shoot that showcases McQueen's breath-taking attention to detail. The book closes with an encyclopaedic survey of all of McQueen's London collections, from his 1992 MA graduate collection to his final collection, posthumously presented in March 2010.

An academically rigorous and beautiful new publication on a crucial chapter in fashion history London Couture is the first book to examine, in detail, the luxurious garments produced by the rarefied London couture industry — from lavish ballgowns to sharply tailored suits and spectacular court dress — as well as the designers who conceived them, their clients and the prestigious publications that disseminated and promoted the 'London Look' to an international audience. Expert authors from around the world have delved into museum collections, as well as the archives of prestigious designers, textile suppliers and fashionable journals, to bring together this pioneering study of the London couture houses of the early to midtwentieth century, renowned for their superb craftsmanship and attention to detail. The full breadth of London's offering is examined, from royal favourite Norman Hartnell to pioneer Charles James, and prestigious houses such as Lucile, Worth and Hardy Amies. The ancillary dressmaking trades in London are also considered, as are the international markets for London couture, and the impact of royal dress on high-end fashion. A wealth of visual material supports the extensive, original research — from beautiful features by celebrated photographer Norman Parkinson to the elegant illustrations of Francis Marshall. Previously unseen garments are illustrated throughout the book, alongside historical photography that documents the houses of the great designers, their favoured fabrics and their most glamorous clients, including Queen Elizabeth II, Margot Fonteyn, and many stars of stage and screen.

From camisoles to corsets, basques to boudoir caps and girdles to garters, Underwear: Fashion in Detail gets up close to some of the most intimate items in the V&A. The book traces the evolution of underwear, from rare examples dating from the sixteenth century and the exaggerated shapes of eighteenth-century courtly undergarments, to Dior's curvaceous 'New Look' girdles to contemporary lingerie by Agent Provocateur and Rigby and Peller. Meticulous colour photography shows these fascinating garments in close detail, while intricate line drawings reveal their construction. The book also highlights the work of designers such as Vionnet and Westwood, who have taken influence from underwear for their own outerwear creations.

Founded as a boutique mail-order service in 1963, Biba — the brainchild of designer Barbara Hulanicki — quickly gained cult status, and outgrew several London premises before landing at 99 — 117 Kensington High Street in 1973 as 'Big Biba', 'the most beautiful store in the world'. This book tells the story of the Biba years, from the first ensembles, through the four iconic London shops, to the eventual flourishing of a lifestyle brand that revolutionized British retail and fashion culture. Featuring a wealth of previously unpublished material, including early fashion illustrations by Hulanicki and full-colour facsimiles of the six luxurious Biba catalogues, The Biba Years investigates the innovative ethos of the company — the first retailer to bring affordable fashion to the young consumers of the 1960s and '70s. Extensive garment photography documents the unique Biba 'look', while archival images provide a glimpse into the glamorous surrounds of the hugely popular London stores. An ideal companion to A to Biba: The Autobiography of Barbara Hulanicki (V&A, 2007), this beautiful book incorporates many personal insights from the designer and her contemporaries at Biba, and includes new illustrations by Hulanicki created specially for the publication. The Biba Years provides the last word on a fashion phenomenon, whose extensive impact on the fashion industry can still be felt today.

Published to accompany a headline exhibition at the V&A, this book is the definitive celebration of the extraordinary photographic career of Horst P. Horst (1906 — 99). One of Vogue's most prolific and creative contributors, Horst worked in Paris and New York, photographing fashions by leading designers and making portraits of the century's stars. His important work made outside the realms of fashion photography is also included here. Horst excelled at nude studies and still-life photography, fusing Hellenic and Surrealist motifs and drawing inspiration from artists such as Salvador Dali. He captured the exquisite simplicity of natural forms — plants, shells and stones — transforming them into abstract kaleidoscopic collages. His little-known travel photographs reveal his fascination with ancient cultures, landscapes and architecture and, in later years, Horst photographed some of the world's most beautiful homes for Vogue and House & Garden. His work epitomizes the interconnections between art, fashion and high society. Today, Horst's photographs continue to inspire art directors and photographers, and he ranks alongside Irving Penn and Richard Avedon as one of the great masters of twentieth-century photography. Accompanies the V&A exhibition Horst: Photographer of Style, 6 September 2014 to 4 January 2015.

This delightful colouring book brings one of the V&A's favourite collections into your home. Drawn by Emily Sutton, illustrator of the best-selling Clara Button books, each page is based on a dolls' house from the V&A Museum of Childhood and is ready for you to personalize. The book is a journey through the rooms of a perfect dolls' house, from front door and reception to bedroom, via toy room, bathroom and pantry, and there is plenty to explore and make your own. Designed to be by turn charming, witty and fun, this is a perfect present and a fantastic souvenir.

The Art Nouveau movement overlapped with late Arts and Crafts in the 1890s and early modernism in the 1910s, combining the exquisite workmanship and natural forms of the former with the innovative materials, forms and practices associated with the latter. Art Nouveau Fashion provides a fascinating introduction to the style, defining it, and placing it in design history by focusing on a number of important designers — Worth, Lucile, Paquin, Poiret — and key topics, such as clients and artists, jewellery and accessories, and advertising. Art Nouveau fashion questioned conventional gender norms with daring flamboyance, presenting women in suits, influenced by tailored menswear, for the street and overtly seductive lingerie for the boudoir. Fashionable corsets manipulated female bodies into increasingly artificial forms, while advertising seduced consumers with images of scantily clad women. The movement's radicalism and openness to diverse design influences directly influenced the counter-culture of the late 1960s, inspiring boutiques in London's fashionable Carnaby Street and San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury. Art Nouveau fashion continues to resonate today — and this book presents it with a wealth of unseen images and historic sources.

Spanning four centuries, the V&A's Fashion Collection is the most comprehensive in the world, housing unrivalled collections of dress, accessories, shoes and hats from the seventeenth century to the present day. This concise volume perfectly encapsulates the collection, from rare eighteenth-century gowns and exquisite eighteenth-century bodices to 1930s evening wear, post-war couture and show-stopping ensembles by contemporary designers. Fashion designers represented include Charles Frederick Worth, Madeleine Vionnet, Cristobal Balenciaga, Coco Chanel, Christian Dior, Mary Quant, Stephen Jones, Vivienne Westwood and Alexander McQueen.

Painting has always been regarded by the Chinese as a supreme art, its merits equal to those of poetry and philosophy. The tradition can be traced over 2,500 years, but — from very early on — many Chinese paintings were made to be viewed on a temporary basis, displayed for just a few hours, or perhaps several weeks. The masterpieces of the form have been seen very rarely, and then only by few, particularly in the West. This spectacular book accompanies a major V&A exhibition that brings together some of the world's masterpieces on silk and paper — many of which will be displayed only for a short time. Presenting works from the richest and most representative collections in the world, the book is an authoritative guide to these great works, and includes the best paintings by the greatest masters as well as those by lesser-known artists. Written by a team of international scholars, the book explains the background against which Chinese painters worked, as well as the original social context of the paintings and their display in the palace, temple, studio or tomb.

Photographer, costume designer, avid diarist—Cecil Beaton was also a “romantic royalist” whose glittering photographs of Queen Elizabeth II were among the most widely published portraits of the 20th century. This fascinating book explores Beaton’s long relationship with the Queen and the royal family, and describes how his royal portraits shaped the monarchy’s public image from the 1930s to the late 1960s. It is a celebration of Beaton, the enduring flair of his portraits, and the myriad sources of inspiration that resulted in photographs so powerful that they molded the world’s perception of a mother, princess, and monarch.

The Cult of Beauty focuses on a period at the end of the nineteenth century when a group of artists, architects and designers found themselves linked by the search for a new Beauty. The Aesthetic Movement, as it came to be known, united romantic bohemians such as Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Morris and Edward Burne-Jones, along with maverick figures such as James McNeill Whistler. The Cult of Beauty brings together the finest pictures, furniture and decorative arts of this extraordinary era, setting them in the context of this glittering cast of characters. This beautiful book also reveals how artists' houses and their extravagant lifestyles became the object of public fascination. The influence of the 'Palaces of Art' created by Rossetti and Morris, Lord Leighton and others led to a widespread revolution in architecture and interior decoration, while Oscar Wilde made his name promoting the idea of 'The House Beautiful'.

This bestselling fashion classic now available in cloth-bound special edition. Illustrated with delightful photographs and drawings, this beautiful book is the perfect gift for both the style-conscious and the desperately in need! Hardy Amies' skilful eye guides you safely through style decisions on everything from blazers and brogues to skiing and sandals.

The Victoria and Albert Museum, London, is the world’s greatest museum of art and design, with a vast collection that been an unparalleled resource for designers for 150 years. This new series of pattern books presents the range of the V&A’s superb collections. Beautifully designed, accessible, and informative, these little books are a repository of ideas and inspiration for designers of all kinds. Included in each volume is a CD of all the images shown within--to be redrawn, reworked, or even licensed for further use. The books are available individually or in a beautiful decorative slipcase. The Fifties The Fifties produced some of the most inventive and innovative twentieth-century pattern designs as the emerging trend for abstraction in the fine arts--as exemplified by Miró, Calder, and Klee, for instance--acted as a stimulus for many European and American designers.

The Victoria and Albert Museum, London, is the world’s greatest museum of art and design, with a vast collection that been an unparalleled resource for designers for 150 years. This new series of pattern books presents the range of the V&A’s superb collections. Beautifully designed, accessible, and informative, these little books are a repository of ideas and inspiration for designers of all kinds. Included in each volume is a CD of all the images shown within--to be redrawn, reworked, or even licensed for further use. The books are available individually or in a beautiful decorative slipcase. William Morris William Morris's world-famous designs possess a timeless quality and appeal that is surprising in work created over 120 years ago. He began designing patterns in the 1860s, for his own use and as part of an effort to improve the general standards of decorative design.

The Victoria and Albert Museum, London, is the world’s greatest museum of art and design, with a vast collection that been an unparalleled resource for designers for 150 years. This new series of pattern books presents the range of the V&A’s superb collections. Beautifully designed, accessible, and informative, these little books are a repository of ideas and inspiration for designers of all kinds. Included in each volume is a CD of all the images shown within--to be redrawn, reworked, or even licensed for further use. The books are available individually or in a beautiful decorative slipcase. INDIAN FLORALS Luscious patterns derived from plants and flowers have been used in India for centuries. Lotus flowers and floral meanders are seen in third-century Buddhist sites, and were given an additional dimension by European prints and books that made their way to the sub-continent in the early seventeenth century

The Victoria and Albert Museum, London, is the world’s greatest museum of art and design, with a vast collection that been an unparalleled resource for designers for 150 years. This new series of pattern books presents the range of the V&A’s superb collections. Beautifully designed, accessible, and informative, these little books are a repository of ideas and inspiration for designers of all kinds. Included in each volume is a CD of all the images shown within--to be redrawn, reworked, or even licensed for further use. The books are available individually or in a beautiful decorative slipcase. Digital Pioneers After World War Two computers offered the opportunity to explore innovative ways of creating images that would demonstrate an unexpected purity in their natural patterning, symmetry, and order.

Christian Dior rocketed to fame with his first collection in 1947 when the 'New Look' took the world by storm. This charming and modest autobiography gives a fascinating and detailed insight into the workings of a great fashion house, while revealing the private man behind the high-profile establishment. It is also a unique portrait of the classic Paris haute couture of the 1950s and offers a rare glimpse behind the scenes. Dior details his childhood in Granville, the family and friends closest to him, his most difficult years and sudden success, as well as his sources of inspiration and creative processes.

This attractive series reveals the V&A's spectacular and extensive pattern collections. Each title in the series includes a free CD of high resolution images. Spitalfields Silks displays delightful floral designs alongside quirky, stikingly modern silks, all produced in eighteenth-century London.

«The grandeur of Imperial Russia is captured in this spectacular book featuring the dress and uniforms of Emperors and officials of the Russian court. Starting in the 1730s with lavishly embroidered coats and elaborately patterned silk banyans from the wardrobe of Tsar Peter II and spanning a period of almost two centuries, these garments document a unique dialogue between military uniform, court dress, European fashion and traditional Russian costume. «Magnificence of the Tsars» celebrates the majesty of masculine uniform in Russia at its finest.»