Something about a gown's intricate construction, unashamed opulence and sheer feminine romance ignites in us the promise of fairy-tale adventure and unparalleled glamour. The magical gowns featured here give full reign to those fantasies, be they the sublime yet simple classical creations of Madame Gres, the heavenly bodies sculpted by Azzedine Alaia, the lean seductive lines of a Deco-inspired silhouette or huge tulle pouffs fit for a princess. In Vogue: The Gown Jo Ellison has curated a collection of more than 300 fabulous images and grouped them into five thematic chapters: Classical, Fantasy, Drama, Decorative and Modernist. The book provides both an evocative celebration of almost a century of fashion history while also showcasing the work of the very best photographers including Tim Walker, Mario Testino, Nick Knight, David Bailey, Herb Ritts, Norman Parkinson, Corinne Day, Cecil Beaton and Horst.

Author Biography

Jo Ellison has been the features director of Vogue since 2005. A former history graduate, she has worked extensively in the Vogue archive and has written numerous features about the magazine's illustrious relationships with photographers past and present, from Cecil Beaton to David Bailey and Juergen Teller. 'The magic of Vogue is in rediscovering how the magazine has recorded so many decades of radical social and economic change (during which womenswear has undergone similarly seismic revolutions) and yet retained its quietly authoritarian voice,' she writes.