Dressed to Kill: What to Wear When Fashion Makes History

Putting fashion at the center of the historical stage, this anthropologist’s dream source for studying ongoing political, sexual, and social trends offers a quirky index to the past. Who could have predicted that dictators could be toppled by excess footwear? Or that the demise of the British Empire would be presided over by a man in a diaper? Fashion’s subliminal force resonates in our cultural memory, Proustian in its power to mark times and places. This engaging compilation proves that, at least in history’s eyes, we are what we wear.

Nan Richardson has authored multiple books and curated exhibitions on fashion photography.