The Fashion Makers, Signed to Kenneth Jay Lane
[Signed to Kenneth Jay Lane] Morris. Bernadine. The Fashion Makers. First Edition. 1978. Book and dust jacket are both in very good minus condition. Photographs by Barbra Walz. This book is from the library of Kenneth Jay Lane, who is profiled in the book. It is inscribed to him by both author and photographer, “Dear Kenny—with thanks, Barbra, and affection Bernadine.”
The 1970s marked a turning point for American fashion. For decades, Paris supplied the marquee names while Seventh Avenue translated European couture for the American market. By the middle of the decade, however, designers such as Halston, Bill Blass, Calvin Klein, Oscar de la Renta, and Ralph Lauren had made New York a serious rival to Paris and Milan. Bernadine Morris, then fashion critic of The New York Times, was among the first to recognize the shift. This volume profiles fifty leading U.S.-based designers of the era, including Kenneth Jay Lane, to whom this copy belonged, along with Adolfo, Geoffrey Beene, Perry Ellis, James Galanos, Edith Head, Charles James, Betsey Johnson, Donna Karan, Mary McFadden, Elsa Peretti, Arnold Scaasi, Pauline Trigère, and Diane von Furstenberg.
“It became the fashionable thing for visitors from Europe to pick up a piece of Kenny Lane jewelry when they were in this country. Princess Margaret had some, so did the Duchess of Windsor. I was lucky. It became a craze.”
--Kenneth Jay Lane