BOOK REVIEW
Our Favorite Style & Fashion Reads | BY HELÉNE RAMACKERS
Synonymous with drama, risk-taking and cutting-edge innovation, The House of Alexander McQueen has been on the fore of the fashion front since its creation in 1992. Exploring the story behind the House, following McQueen’s early days to the current leadership of Sarah Burton and everything in-between, Little Book of Alexander McQueen is a celebration of the brand. Authored by established journalist Karen Homer, she has managed to compile an exquisite book which includes a carefully curated collection of finished designs, close-up details and sketches, with the final product pulling back the veil on the wonderful world of McQueen.
Built almost entirely from glass, Phaidon’s spectacular book Glass Houses presents 50 stunning homes architecturally designed that utilize glass to maximum effect. Including early modernist houses from the 1930s, such as Philip Johnson’s Glass House and Mies van der Rohe’s Farnsworth House, and glamorous mid-century LA villas like Pierre Koenig’s Case Study #22, Glass Houses includes new innovations that have made even more daring glass structures possible. Awe-inspiring photographs illustrate the dynamic, lightfilled living spaces that only glass can deliver. Glass Houses features homes in Australia, Brazil, Chile, Czech Republic, Ecuador, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Spain, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, The Netherlands, UK, USA and Vietnam. Cover art by Phaidon. In celebration of more than seven decades since the inception of Chloé was founded by Egyptian-born Gaby Aghion in 1952, Chloé Catwalk by Thames and Hudson is a beautiful compilation of collections presented through catwalk photography. Pioneering luxury ready-to-wear, Chloé paved the way for fashion that was all about ease and femininity, offering an elegant haute bohemian style for the modern, liberated Parisienne. Hiring a young Karl Lagerfeld as early as the 1960s, he stayed for over two decades, achieving fame and recognition globally through his Chloé work before Stella McCartney succeeded him straight out of fashion school. Opening up a concise history of the house of Chloé before exploring the collections themselves, this definitive publication chronicles a brief overview of the history of the brand, together with an outline and biography of each designer. 88 | UPSCALELIVINGMAG.COM | AUG/SEPT 2023
Compiled by Phaidon Editors, Interiors Pink Edition is a showcase of global residential design and decorating. Featuring 400 rooms organized by designers from A-Z, this coveted book goes beyond decorators, designers and architects to highlight exquisite interiors designed by fashion designers, artists, style icons and film stars, each of whom has made a unique contribution to the world of interior design. Interiors Pink Edition features everything from chateaux, town houses and penthouses, to desert ranches, beach houses and tiny apartments in more than 25 countries. Lauded as the essential inspiration source for design aficionados, the book features the ‘greats’ of interior design – Billy Baldwin, Elsie de Wolfe and Colefax & Fowler, alongside contemporary stars such as Kelly Hoppen, Karim Rashid and Anouska Hempel. The elegant and eye-popping pink velvet cover is sure to be a statement piece or conversation starter in any home. Cover art by Phaidon.
