Masters of Fashion Illustration

by David Downton

This lavishly illustrated and beautifully designed book celebrates the colorful lives and dazzling work of the great twentieth-century fashion illustrators, as chosen by one of today's leading fashion artists, David Downton. The book concludes with a portfolio of David Downton's own work, featuring drawings of the Paris haute couture shows and portraits of contemporary icons such as Dita Von Teese and Linda Evangelista. Many of the stunning images in Masters of Fashion Illustration have not been seen since they were first published.

Genres: Fashion, Art, Nonfiction

224 pages, Paperback

First published September 22, 2010

Reviews

[Dana Al-Basha | دانة الباشا · Rating 5 out of 5]

David Downton is one of the best fashion illustrators in the world! I LOVE his work, it's so elegant and graceful, his work is "fashion" as simple as that, his work is as gentle as watercolors.



Whenever I want inspiration, I flip through the pages of this book, it's so beautiful and varied. All about style and fashion and the beauty of the female form.

[Sabrina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has beautiful illustrations and a history of how some of the greatest fashion illustrators started the industry. I want to live during that time when people cared about beautiful, well-made clothing—a time when fabrics were luxurious, and people loved dressing glamorously.

[Greg L Goldstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely coffee table book featuring short bios of many top artists of the 2oth century, well-illustrated and beautifully designed.

Inexplicably out of print.

[Maria K. · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Masters of Fashion Illustration" is as close as it gets to the sartorial drawing board - a peek into the minds of the greats like Tom Keogh, Andy Warhol, Carl Erickson and my great compatriot Erte. The lives and times of the fantastic artists are intermixed with illustrations that vary from superbly realistic to nearly abstract; sparsely outlined and three-dimensionally vibrant; pieces that were just as likely to have been sketched in fifteen minutes on a napkin at a Parisian cafe, as agonized over for many days and nights in a studio.

Art is subjective, of course, and the styles of the various artists represented in the book are so vastly different, that the readers are bound to have their own dislikes and their own favorites. However, there is one sentiment that I hope will be shared by all - the sense of wonder and admiration for the creative minds, whose ideas were so potent, they came to become reality.

Some may consider fashion to be an inconsequential subject unworthy of time and study. I, however, believe that it is a unique art form and one of the many ways in which we express ourselves - and has been since the first time a caveman wrapped an animal skin around himself and his mate hung a necklace of animal teeth around her neck. So, read, absorb, feast your eyes and enjoy!

[Odd Catrina]

Puede que no sea una clavada en temas de moda, tendencias o historia de vida de diseñadores destacados; me interesan esos temas, simplemente no me mantengo actualizada. Lo que sí disfruto de sobremanera es ver las ilustraciones y bocetos que han acompañado desde conceptos creativos hasta anuncios en medios impresos. Este libro reúne con un gusto exquisito lo mejor de los artistas que se enfocaron en retratar la moda-hecha-arte de su época, como Erté, Bob Peak, Bernard Blossac, Andy Warhol y Carl Erickson. Se trata de mi “libro de mesa de sala” preferido, que uso para llenar mi mente de inspiración y ganas de aprender a dibujar. –Ana Pau

[Emerson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Each section of the book goes back in time, when past events have affected the aesthetic styles and qualities of fashion illustration for a certain amount of time. From full-coloured to minimal work in an instant. It's a great book for endless inspiration for any fashionista who wants to branch out to another creative pursuit in the world of fashion.