“Bending the Rules: Fashion Beyond the Binary” by Camille Benda & Gwyn Conaway, $29.95 (Princeton Architectural Press/Chronicle Books)
Visually stunning and artistically informative, Benda, the head of Costume Design at the California Institute of the Arts and fashion historian Conaway, combines their shared histories and fashion acumen in this exploration of how identity and gender have been perceived across the annals of history.
In a museum-worthy collection of unisex art ranging from sculpture, digital illustrations, photographs, full-color graphics, and designer collections, the images are fascinating and plentiful, creatively embellished with interviews, perspectives, opinions on fashion development (from kilts to codpieces to kimonos and cuffs and collars, bras, bustiers, and Barbie!), and coupled with inspired, informed narratives.
The authors present a well-rounded collection of images and text on the ways clothing and color have influenced and molded the world’s impressions of sexuality and presentation. This striking, exquisite sartorial excavation of style, history, and gender is simply dazzling.
https://www.chroniclebooks.com/products/bending-the-rules
(ebar.com)