Hats

Description

From Bowlers to Bergeres, baseball caps to boaters, "Hats" is the ultimate guide to headgear through history. Beyond mere practicality and aesthetics, hats reveal a complex interplay of class, gender, etiquette and social allegiances, speaking to the culture of the time from which each style emerged. Even today, these past lives of hats are deeply embedded in our cultural memory. At which occasions is it appropriate for one to wear a hat? Why do hats confer a certain presence on the wearer that no other element of dress can achieve? Much hat-wearing depends on these elaborate systems of rules that are largely abstract but steeped in our culture.Drawing on historical and contemporary examples, as well as depictions in art, literature and film, Hughes takes the reader on a fascinating journey from Marie Antoinette's lavish fashion hats, through Marlene Dietrich's beret and the hat-habits of kings and queens, to Philip Treacy and Stephen Jones' modern millinery workrooms. Packed with sharp historical insights and playful narratives of rebellious and sinister hats that signal anarchy, villainy and disguise, this beautifully illustrated book offers the definitive guide to one the most culturally rich accessories in fashion history."

Author description

Clair Hughes is an independent scholar. She previously held the position of Professor of English and American Literature at the International Christian University, Tokyo, Japan.