Couture is a world of glamour, of history, of tradition, of signatures. This world and these signatures -- not simply labels in a dress, but complete, recognizable looks -- are the subject of a book of unmatched elegance: Couture: The Great Designers. Couture opens in the 1840s with Charles Frederick Worth, the first of the grands couturiers. Soon we are introduced to Chanel and Schiaperelli, the stars of the 1930s, and to Balenciaga, Dior, Vionnet, Lanvin, Poiret, Valentino, Armani. The book also turns to Yves Saint Laurent, whose first collection was cheered in the streets of Paris, to Norman Hartnell, whose wedding dress for the bride of the Marquess of Bath was called the "eigth wonder of the world," to the masterful designs of Claire McCardell and the vibrant ones of Issey Miyake. This splendid books gives accounts of the sublime -- including Fortuny -- and the little-known -- such as Augustabernard, whose work survives in museums, attics, and trunks. Each designer fits into a historical niche, and we learn of his or her palette, silhouette, contribution, signature. Never before has the world of couture been covered on such a grand scale. The illustrations come from the designers' own sketchpads, from period illustrations in fashion magazines, from contemporary drawings of garments in private collections, and from house photographs, manyof which are being reproduced for the first time in these pages. Prominent are famous images by famous photographers -- including Horst, Abbe, Cecel Beaton, Norman Parkinson -- and many details and accessories have been photographed specially for this book. A banquet for the senses, Couture is by far the loveliest volum on the subject.

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