Artwear: Fashion and Anti-fashion

Artwear: Fashion and Anti-fashion by Melissa Leventon.

Poised at the juncture of art, craft and fashion, artwear has both challenged and blurred cultural boundaries for the past thirty-five years. In this richly illustrated history of wearable art, Melissa Leventon puts the genre in context as the latest in the long line of aesthetic dress reforms that began with the Arts and Crafts movement. She goes on to trace its development from the street styles and studio fibre art of the 1960s and 1970s to the present day, highlighting many of its leading practitioners and discussing its characteristic forms, processes and influences.
A crocheted wool coat of exuberant textures and glowing colours, a shibori-dyed and pleated silk vest of baroque sensuousness; a headdress of intricately ruched ribbon in the shape of a leaping fish; an evening gown woven from shredded dollar bills; a kimono that portrays a dusky summer sky; a startling, seven-sleeved shirt – these are just a few of the beautiful, imaginative, provocative, even surreal works of artwear featured in the book, which includes examples from North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Korea and Japan. The full spectrum of work ranges from pieces that are only technically wearable, to challenging garments created specifically for performance, to one-of-a-kind works that are as at home on one’s back as on the wall, to luxurious limited-edition clothing.
Artwear: Fashion and Anti-fashion is invaluable to fashion designers and students, art and textiles professionals, craftspeople and anyone with an interest in the fashion world.

With 197 illustrations, 185 in colour.

160 pages.

Condition: Great.