Sample: 100 Fashion Designers - 010 Curators

Even the cover of this book on innovative fashion design is unique; its white pleated paper is just a taste of the originality to be found within. Ten of the fashion world's most respected figures, such as four-time winner of the British Designer of the Year award Alexander McQueen, and freelance Paris-based journalist Stephen Todd, have chosen 100 international young designers of clothing and accessories to show off their work. Their creations are bold and often unusual. The book's smart layout has a collage feel to it, with descriptions of each designer written in typewriter-like font placed in a white box, and photographs and sketches surrounding the text. Azumi and David Percival Yamashita, the design duo behind the London label A'N'D', present bags made out of boots and shoes, and leg warmers derived from cut-off jeans. Nicole Noselli and Daphne Gutierrez, of the New York label Bruce, showcase a balanced collection of inventive yet accessible designs, including cotton shirtdresses with pin tucks on the sleeves. And Rio de Janiero's Isabela Capeto, in her line Ibo, features styles inspired by architecture and ethnicity (e.g., a blue and yellow dress with diagonal straps forming a halter top). Lovers of fashion will find much to ponder in this excellent overview of the next age of creators. 1,000 color illus.