Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Lucien Lelong was a central figure in French fashion from the 1920s to the 1950s, and his designs were in many ways precursors of contemporary fashion shapes and developments. Noted for his skill, exquisite workmanship and beautiful fabrics, Lelong and his house promoted a fluid, minimalist, elegant look. Lelong blended modern design with a strong business sense and was noted for both his fashions and his entrepeneurship. He was one of the earliest designers to diversify into lingerie, accessories and perfumes, and in 1934 he introduced a luxury ready-to-wear line. During the Occupation in World War II he was instrumental in persuading the Germans to allow French couture houses to remain in Paris rather than moving to Berlin. This book, a wonderfully illustrated history of Lelong and his house, chronicles the period and its leading personalities, artists and designers.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

In the pantheon of 20th-century French couturiers, Lucien Lelong--unlike contemporaries Chanel, Dior, and Givenchy--is a relative unknown. From 1920 to 1948, Lelong's large Parisian design house produced a successful, diversified line of women's clothing, perfumes, handbags, and accessories. Characterized by elegant draping and detailed handwork, Lelong's designs epitomized modernity and movement. His luxury brand strategy predated other fashion houses by decades. As the chair of the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture during WW II, Lelong was widely credited with being a key figure in preventing a relocation of the French fashion industry to Berlin or Vienna. Part personal biography and part fashion catalogue, this slender volume by French journalist and writer Demornex is well researched and documented, drawing on family and museum archives. It includes more than 130 high-quality color and black-and-white photographs and illustrations, along with an abbreviated chronology of Lelong's life and a selective bibliography. As an introduction to a largely forgotten but noteworthy figure in fashion history, this book will be useful for fashion and textiles collections. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty; general readers. L. J. Frederiksen Washington State University