Fashion: 21 Best Fashion Books of all time according to Professors ......

Photo: Courtesy of publishers. Artwork: Brooke Frischer/Fashionista.

The 21 Best Fashion Books of all time according to Professors

There is no better portal to knowledge than a book. Designers, editors, industry changemakers and fashion professors have unique insights into the best texts on the subject 'Best Fashion Books of All Time'. Below you will find fashion-related titles they consider as must-reads for inspiring your creativity or power your hunger to learn more about fashion. There are total 21 fashion books. I choose 9 books to give you an impression. For the complete list, see the link at the end of this blog. I hope you're inspired! 

THE NEW BLACK VANGUARD BY ANTWAUN SARGENT
Photo: Courtesy of Aperture
"Joy! Pouring over the images, the rush of embodied understanding was/is glorious and profound." —Prof. Morgan

A VISIBLE MAN BY EDWARD ENNINFUL
Photo: Courtesy of Penguin Press
"Enninful is the most qualified person to replace Anna Wintour and in this book, he makes a strong case for his candidature. You know why else I love this book? It's the references for me. There are names that you will recognize, like Naomi Campbell and Pat McGrath, but there are others who have been lost in the churn of the fashion system. Enninful evacuates them and shares how they contributed to his ascent. This book pairs well with 'The Chiffon Trenches' by the late André Leon Talley. I would have loved to see them in conversation." —  Professor Jonathan Square, Parsons School of Design

ADORNED IN DREAMS - FASHION AND MODERNITY BY ELIZABETH WILSON
Photo: Courtesy of Rutgers University Press
"Originally published in 1985, Wilson's work serves as a foundational text to understand the phenomenon of fashion in our modern world. The theoretical side of fashion is often either overlooked or mythologized, in effect marginalizing it entirely. In reality, the theories of fashion as a psychological and sociological phenomenon are massively important to understanding our most unsavory fashion behaviors — overconsumption, exclusion, neocolonialism, loss of life in the supply chain — and without that understanding, we will continue to engage in caustic and negative behavior in the name of fashion." —Prof. Gabriel

D.V. BY DIANA VREELAND
Photo: Courtesy of Ecco Press
"Diana Vreeland is my problematic fave. She was a product of her times, despite being an eccentric and free spirit. The book is chock full of zesty quotable quotes, like, 'I mean, a new dress doesn't get you anywhere; it's the life you're living in the dress, the sort of life you had lived before and what you will do in it later.' Or, 'I can't imagine becoming bored with red — it would be like becoming bored with the person you love.' She said that Black people should not be offended if white people wear blackamoors. Eek." —Prof. Square

DRESSED IN DREAMS BY TANISHA FORD
Photo: Courtesy of St. Martin's Press
"Tanisha Ford is an academic like myself, but this book is more memoir than monograph. Ford's scholarship has shaped the way I understand the relationship between fashion history and African American identity. However, 'Dressed in Dreams' was game-changer. Ford is on the forefront of breaking barriers between academia and popular writing. The book is fun, vulnerable and just plain readable." —Prof. Square

LITTLE BLACK DRESS BY ANDRÉ LEON TALLEY
Photo: Adam Kuehl/Skira Rizzoli
"This is a wonderful collection and history of the little black dress, as only André Leon Talley can tell it!" —Professor Adrienne Jones, Pratt Institute

RARE BIRD OF FASHION - THE IRREVERENT IRIS APFEL BY ERIC BOMAN
Photo: Courtesy of Thames & Hudson
"The undisputed queen of style! When this exhibit was at the Met, I must have gone at least eight times, in hopes of meeting her. It didn't happen then (that story is for another time), so I bought the book. Every single page is dripping with fabulousness. It's one of my personal sources of inspiration; only for the true fashionistas." —Prof. Jones

TIM GUNN'S FASHION BIBLE BY TIM GUNN
Photo: Courtesy of Gallery Books
"Tim Gunn is an undying inspiration for fashion pedagogy. You can't go wrong with any of what Tim Gunn says or writes, but his fashion bible is a particularly useful resource. It's less a bible and more of an accessible history of the most common garments in our closets." —Prof. Square

SNEAKERS - THE COMPLETE LIMITED EDITIONS GUIDE BY U-DOX
Photo: Courtesy of Thames & Hudson
"What makes sneaker releases even more special is when they're collaborative and/or limited. This book gives excellent representations of what makes this industry so special: innovative material selections and storytelling." —Prof. Williams

Thank you for reading this blogpost.
Source: Fashionista