China through the looking glass

By Andrew Bolton, with John Galliano, Adam Geczy, Maxwell K. Hearn, Homay King, Harold Koda, Mei Mei Rado, and Wong Kar Wai. Photography by Platon.

For centuries, China has fueled the creative imagination and served as an enduring source of fashion inspiration. This stunning publication explores the influence of Chinese art, film, and aesthetics on international fashion designers, including Christian Dior, Jean Paul Gaultier, Karl Lagerfeld, Alexander McQueen, and Yves Saint Laurent. Drawing upon Chinese decorative arts, cinema, and costume— notably imperial court robes, the close-fitting cheongsam, and the unisex Mao suit—their breathtaking, often exotic designs are fantastical pastiches of motifs that both mirror the original source materials and transform them into ingeniously creative fashions.

Illustrated with new photographs by Platon, this is a lavish volume of special beauty, with a gold- stamped silk cover and Chinese- fold pages intermixed with translucent, printed vellum overlays. Juxtaposing modern fashions and film stills with their forebearers in fine and decorative arts and historical dress, China: Through the Looking Glass reveals the rich and ongoing creative dialogue between East and West, past and present.