relationship of Dior fashion and visual art, the secret world of the atelier, Dior’s perfumes and jewellery, and finally, in “Starring Dior,” celebrities and royalty who have made Dior part of their signature look from Grace Kelly to Nicole Kidman.
Inspiration Dior By Florence Müller Publisher: Abrams (2011) 330 pages, 200 images Hardcover. Retailing for $145.00
Based on a recent exhibition at the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Inspiration Dior contains archive photographs of Christian Dior’s life, costume sketches, reproductions of paintings, and, of course, photographs of his famous creations. The book traces several stages in the work of Christian Dior and his successors including 1947’s sumptuous “New Look” created after years of wartime depravation, Dior’s architecturally inspired “Lines and Bodies,” “Christian Dior and the Eighteenth Century”, and “God and Gold,” inspired by the riches of ancient Egypt and Marie Antoinette. Additional sections examine the close
Inspiration Dior offers delightful surprises, including three palm-sized books hidden within: (1) a miniature reproduction of Dior’s sketchbook from his first collection in 1947, (2) photographs of his French gardens, and (3) a book about the designer’s 1959 visit to Moscow. Metallicgold pages unfold to reveal Dior’s 2004 collection juxtaposed with the curvaceous form of the J’adore perfume bottle. Beautifully photographed and creatively produced, Inspiration Dior is an exquisite picture-book for adults.
and anime art. Instead, he places his creations within the tradition of Japanese art and surrealism.
Murakami Versailles
Certainly, nothing is more surreal than looking at images in Murakami Versailles of highlighter-bright multi-colour smiling daisies with bright little eyes against a background of chandeliers and marble busts in the formal Hall of Mirrors. In another room of the palace, bright fibreglass mushrooms spring up under damask-patterned walls and goldframed portraits. The final pages of the coffee-table book detail how Murakami’s sculptures were assembled and include images of his sketches and drawings. Murakami Versailles offers a visually stunning juxtaposition of traditional Western and contemporary Japanese art that requires no translation to appreciate.
By Laurent Le bon, Philippe Dagen, and Jill Gasparina Photographs by Cédric Delsaux Publisher: Éditions Xavier Barral (2011) 256 pages, over 200 images Hardcover. Retailing for $85.00
Controversial, playful, subversive, cute, and sinister all at the same time—Murakami Versailles offers a unique series of contrasts that will undoubtedly stir conversation. Cédric Delsaux’s large colour photographs document a 2010 exhibit of famed Japanese contemporary artist Takashi Murakami’s work in the palace of Versailles. In an interview with Murakami, he denies the label of “pop art” commonly attributed by Western media to his sculptures, which are brightly coloured, cartoonlike figures, reminiscent in their aesthetic of manga
Louis Vuitton: Architecture and Interiors
By Frédéric Edelmann, Ian Luna, Rafael Magrou, and Mohsen Mostafavi. Contributions by Jun Aoki. Publisher: Rizzoli (2011) 272 pages, 100 images Hardcover Retailing for $90.00
Fashion and architecture mingle in Louis Vuitton: Architecture and Interiors. Photographs describe floor plans like architectural sketches, headquarters are praised, the secrets of industrial buildings discussed. Crafted by its in-house architectural department, Louis Vuitton buildings blend brushed steel, glass, and alabaster in a recognizably soigné package.
IV
Through interviews with the architects, the book discusses how each Louis Vuitton store complements the urban landscape of the city in which it is built. Each space is described in near-poetic detail, capturing the subtlety of Louis Vuitton’s architectural vocabulary: embellishments such as flowers and LV monograms somehow seamless with the local environment in which the buildings are immersed. The result is part architectural guide, part travelogue through cities such as Moscow, Tokyo, Singapore, Macau, Hong, Kong, Las Vegas, New York, Saint-Tropez, and Paris.