Catwalk: The Art of the Fashion Show A – Z provides a systematic examination of the fashion show, from its beginnings around 1900 to the present day. This volume was devised to accompany an exhibition at the Vitra Design Museum in Weil am Rhein, Germany, that explores the fashion show as a cultural ritual and a total artistic experience.
The exhibition and the book showcase iconic shows by Balenciaga, Chanel, Dior, Gucci, Helmut Lang, Maison Martin Margiela, Issey Miyake, Prada, Viktor & Rolf and Louis Vuitton, bringing together historical sources, contemporary image series and essays by leading voices in the fashion world – model Malgosia Bela recounts the highlights and challenges of international runways, sound supervisor Michel Gaubert reveals how sound shapes moods and dramaturgy, buyer and curator Andreas Murkudis offers insights into the selection of key fashion collections, fashion historian Caroline Evans analyses the social roles of the fashion show, Cathy Horyn reflects on its influence on contemporary fashion, and Valerie Steele, Director of The Museum at FIT in New York, situates it within the global cultural context.
Catwalk is both an opulent visual archive and a definitive reference work, presenting the phenomenon of the fashion show in all its facets – well-founded, multi-voiced, and close to the action.
Vitra Design Museum, 256pp, 23cm x 30cm, illustrated hardcover, 2025
