num_pages: 280
description: Valentina was the twentieth centurys first American fashion designer celebrity working and living on equal social footing with the clientele she dressed (Greta Garbo Gloria Swanson Katharine Hepburn Millicent Rogers and Audrey Hepburn among others). One of the few designers who proved that America could live without the Parisian haute couture her career is a much needed missing link in the history of American fashion. Beyond merely turning out show-stopping evening gowns Valentinas exotic beauty dramatic personality and incomparable style earned her a legendary reputation. Kohle Yohannan explores the carefully constructed persona and lore of this designer who helped define American Couture. Published in association with the Museum of the City of New Yorks exhibition Valentina: New York Couture and the Cult of Celebrity this book includes photographs never-before-seen personal ephemera sketches and original platinum prints from master photographers such as Cecil Beaton Horst P. Horst and George Hoyningen-Huene.
language: English
title: Valentina: American Couture and the Cult of Celebrity
publisher: Rizzoli