Silk: Fibre, Fabric and Fashion

Silk has long captured the imagination of peoples across the globe, inspiring creativity in the making of luxurious textiles. This book reveals a breathtaking selection of fabric and fibre dating from antiquity to the early twenty-first century. This outstanding new survey drawing on the exceptional collections of London's Victoria and Albert Museum shows the finest examples of the aesthetic and technical achievements of artisans, designers and manufacturers. Structured by technique, from dyeing to weaving and crochet to embroidery, this is a magnificent visual exploration of methods used over the centuries. From historic treasures in China and South America to 19th-century European International Exhibitions of art and industry, and more recently, designers' catwalk collections from the fashion capitals of America, Asia and Europe, here is the ultimate compendium of silk, presented in a luxurious real-cloth binding. Silk is the authoritative sourcebook for textile experts and for professionals, exploring methods and traditions across the history and geography of silk production, and celebrating the ingenuity and skill of designers and makers.