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This book was written by Harold Koda, as Curator in Change of The Costume Institute. Originally written to accompany the
exhibition Extreme Beauty: The Body Transformed, at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Extreme Beauty tackles the
principles of beauty through the ages in different cultures. It talks about the changing silhouette and the costumes
intervention in physically changing the human form. He does this by breaking it down into five sections, the neck and
shoulders, chest, waist, hips, and feet. ‘Koda, draws on the historical and cultural diversity of fashion to tell the
fascinating complex story of the continual varied shifts of style and recurrences of the past that have occurred right up
to the present’ Philippe de Montebello.
I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the connection with history and fashion. Koda explains how the
naked form has been manipulated in order to make it more beautiful. His study of historical fashion covers geographic
areas of Asia and Africa, and of the more controversial designers today. The
images and the content throughout are fascinating. I have found it sometimes
surprising how two very different cultures can influence each other. This certainly is a book worth owning in your collection.
Related Links:
The
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Museum of the City of New York
