Costume Art: The Metropolitan Museum of Art Book

This stunning catalogue accompanies The Met’s Costume Institute exhibition and makes the case for fashion as art, sitting proudly alongside painting, sculpture and photography. Looking at the dressed body through the lens of age, size, gender and disability, this book pairs contemporary and historic fashion with the art that inspired it, from Greek armour and Roman sculpture to manuscripts and grand painted canvases. You’ll find designs by Madame Grès, Alexander McQueen, Rick Owens and Madeleine Vionnet, photographed by Paul Westlake, some on custom mannequins created by scanning real people. Artist Julie Wolfe’s striking new collages, made specially for the book, bring art and fashion together in fresh, surprising ways.