20th Century Fashion: 100 Years of Apparel Ads

by Alison A. Nieder, Jim Heimann (Editor)

The way we wore The story of modern fashion—from couture to mass market
The 20th century saw fashion evolve from an exclusive Parisian salon business catering to a wealthy elite, into a global industry employing millions, with new trends whisked into stores before the last model has left the catwalk. Along the way, the signature feminine silhouettes of each era evolved beyond recognition: House of Worth crinolines gave way to Vionnet’s bias-cut gowns, Dior’s New Look to Quant’s Chelsea Look, Halston’s white suit to Frankie B.’s low-rise jeans. In menswear, ready-made suits signaled the demise of bespoke tailoring, long before Hawaiian shirts, skinny ties or baggy pants entered the fore.

20th Century Fashion offers a stylish retrospective of the last hundred years, via 400 fashion advertisements from the Jim Heimann Collection. Using imagery culled from a century of advertising, this book documents the unrelenting pace of fashion as it was adopted into the mass culture, decade by decade. An in-depth introduction, chapter text, and illustrated timeline detail the style-makers and trend-setters, from couture to the mass market; and how the historic events, design houses, retailers, films, magazines, and celebrities shaped the way we dressed—then and now.

Genres: Fashion, Nonfiction, History, Art, Art History

462 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Po · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good selection of vintage ads, puts me in a very relaxed state, a must for the fashion lovers.

[Liselotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful book and really fun to have around if you are into fashion history!

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Semi-educational. The book is not marketed as being a collection of ads, and as a result it's only partially a history of 20th century fashion. Caveat emptor!

[WORN Fashion Journal]

Being a girl who once plastered her walls with magazine pages, I was pretty pleased to learn about this book’s existence, which shows just how beautiful and influential fashion adverts can be. 100 Years of Apparel Ads is sorted into decade-spanning chapters, each with its own brief and basic overview of fashion history (also in French and German). The text-heavy ads from the beginning of the century are almost unrecognizable; their copy tells of technological textile triumphs and persuades the customer politely to consider quality and price, alongside a delicate technical illustration. Through this collection, it is fascinating to watch these earnest endorsements of tangible apparel products slowly transform into practically the opposite: glossy photographs of models’ faces with only brand names to accompany them. I can’t think of many industries that could thrive without advertising, but surely fashion is one that wouldn’t even exist without it. This book serves as definitive proof. (reviewed by Alexandra Barton)

[Ubalstecha · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fabulous collection of ads from the 20th century, ordered chronologically. Editor Alison A. Nieder uses the ads to explain fashion and lifestyle trends from the century as well. A lovely coffee table book for the fashionista or ad fan.

[AmyJayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. Includes interesting snippets of clothing history and it is a visual feast.

[elle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved seeing the versatility of fashion throughout the years. Always evolving, ever-changing creativity.

[Miguel Ángel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Se podría decir que este libro es una monografía de la moda y los sucesos, aunque no tan profundos, del cambio de las tendencias y estilos de las personas al vestir. Desde las grandes artistas vestidas en Dior o Chanel, hasta las zapatillas de Luis XVI que se convirtieron muchos años más tarde en las preferidas de las mujeres de sociedad, este libro lo tiene todo y en resumidas palabras. Con una línea del tiempo de los sucesos fashionistas qué más marcaron cada época y el cómo se vendía la publicidad y se sigue haciendo. Lo único que le faltó es más información, me quede con ganas de más y más.

[Ale Teleleu · Rating 4 out of 5]

really nice brief history of apparel ads in the 20th century. Loads of examples and photos! An extremely pleasant book to read for those who are interested in fashion!

[Jana · Rating 3 out of 5]

for uni.