About
Fashion as a system — the regular changing of clothing styles as a form of identity expression and social signaling — developed in the courts of 14th-century Europe. Sumptuary laws (regulating who could wear what) enforced social hierarchy through clothing. The French court became the center of European fashion; Paris has been the fashion capital since Louis XIV.
Charles Frederick Worth (1825–1895) created haute couture — made-to-measure fashion as art, with seasonal collections. Coco Chanel liberated women from corsets (1920s); Christian Dior's 'New Look' (1947) defined post-war femininity; Yves Saint Laurent introduced the tuxedo suit for women (1966); Alexander McQueen turned fashion shows into theatrical events. Today, the global fashion industry is worth $2.5 trillion and is one of the world's most polluting.
# Top 10 fashion designers
- 1Coco Chanel
- 2Christian Dior
- 3Yves Saint Laurent
- 4Gianni Versace
- 5Giorgio Armani
- 6Ralph Lauren
- 7Calvin Klein
- 8Vivienne Westwood
- 9Alexander McQueen
- 10Karl Lagerfeld
Fascinating Facts
- ◆Coco Chanel liberated women from the corset — she is credited with freeing women from the most physically restrictive fashion item in history
- ◆Alexander McQueen's final collection (Plato's Atlantis, 2010, presented posthumously) is considered the greatest fashion show ever staged
- ◆The fast fashion industry produces 100 billion garments annually — most worn fewer than 5 times before disposal
More in Culture4 related
9
Culture
Mona Lisa
The most famous painting in the world — Leonardo's masterpiece of mystery.
Interest89/100
45
Culture
The Sistine Chapel
Michelangelo's masterpiece — four years on a scaffold painting the story of creation.
Interest79/100
27
Culture
Shakespeare
The greatest writer in the English language — his words still shape our world.
Interest77/100
20
Culture
Beethoven's 9th Symphony
Composed while completely deaf, the Ninth is humanity's greatest musical achievement.
Interest75/100