Mademoiselle : Coco Chanel and the pulse of history / Rhonda K. Garelick.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Garelick, Rhonda K., 1962-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Chanel, Coco, 1883-1971.

Chanel, Coco.

Fashion designers--France--Biography.

Fashion designers.

Fashion design.

History.

France.

Fashion design--History--20th century.

Genre:

Biographies.

History.

Physical Description:

xxii, 576 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color) ; 24 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Other Title:

Coco Chanel and the pulse of history

Place of Publication:

New York : Random House, [2014]

Summary:

"Little black dresses. Fake pearls. Jersey knit. Blazers. Ballet flats. Today--and for nearly the last hundred years--we all see some version of Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel every time we pass a woman on the street. But few among us realize that Chanel's role in the events of the twentieth century was as pervasive as her influence on fashion, or how deeply she absorbed and then brilliantly reimagined the historical currents around her. Here, with unprecedented detail and ambition--and through fascinating, thoroughly researched portraits of Chanel's lovers and friends--Rhonda Garelick shows us the Chanel who conquered the world . . . a woman who thirsted to create others in her image, who ruthlessly and innovatively borrowed from her famous (and infamous) intimates, who understood the idea of branding and image well ahead of her time, who created "wearable personality." This is Chanel at the nexus of history: a woman of daring, passion, and legendary vision, in a wonderful biography that gives her long-awaited due"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Early life

A new world

Designing together : Coco Chanel and Arthur Edward "Boy" Capel

Grand duke Dmitri

My heart is in my pocket : Coco and Pierre Reverdy

Women friends, mimetic contagion, and the Parisian Avant-garde

Antigone in Vogue : Chanel costumes the Modernist stage

Bendor : the richest man in Europe

The patriotism of luxury : Chanel and Paul Iribe

The pulse of history : Chanel, Fascism, and the interwar years

Love, war, and espionage

Showing them : Chanel returns.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [437]-545) and index.

ISBN:

9781400069521

1400069521

OCLC:

868199582