Cover of Couture in the 21st Century. Courtesy of Harrods Publishing
From Oscar de la Renta to Erdem, Editor-in-Chief of Harrods Publishing, Deborah Bee, has interviewed some of the world's leading designers and uncovered many of the intriguing stories surrounding their design history. So, fashion lovers everywhere will be pleased to know that the time has come to indulge in fashion's most fascinating secrets with the release of Bee's book, Couture in the 21st Century.
What's more, Harrods Publishing has teamed up with internationally renowned photographer, Rankin, who "captures the personality" of each and every one of the designers in his telling portraits.
Bee's motivation for writing a new fashion book came from the realisation "that many designers were either referencing names from the past, or employing in their collections the sort of detailing usually reserved for haute couture, like hand-finishing, embroidery and really complicated construction."
Pages from the book focus on Erdem. Courtesy of Harrods Publishing
This emphasis on tracing current design inspirations back to the craftsmanship from the past is demonstrated on almost every page. While Bee focuses on industry newcomers such as Jason Wu, she also makes it clear that no one can forget the work of the masters. "The designers are hugely clued up on fashion history," she remarks.
A focus on Jason Wu. Courtesy of Harrods Publishing
With so many famous faces to choose from, it's not surprising that Bee struggles to decide on her favourite interviewee so far. She describes Oscar de la Renta's stories of his days working with Cristobal Balenciaga as "fascinating and hilarious" but, "the next generation down are equally as amazing." She cites Matthew Williamson as an example. "When Matthew Williamson was in his teens, he made a little box for Christian Lacroix to try and get a job." What better way is there to prove that the fashion greats of past and present are most definitely aligned?
Couture in the 21st Century will be on sale from 14 October in store in Harrods, harrods.com and at leading high-street and online booksellers.
A detailed look at the work of Oscar de la Renta. Courtesy of Harrods Publishing