Beneath It All: 100 Years of French Elegance

Chenoune (history of fashion, Institut Francais de la Mode) treats the material, historical, and symbolic history of undergarments as a woman moves from her chest of drawers to her mirror in a search for identity. He discusses the erotic value of lingerie, its role in the trousseau, and corsetry and fashion. The eight chapters cover inventory and invention, the healthy body versus the corset, the flapper in the age of democratic lingerie; nostalgia for the feminine, 1947-1957; hot undies, little girls and liberated women; and slim back, big breasts the 1990s. Illustrated with b&w photographs. Oversize: 10x12