“Space is taken up with a sad-looking vase of plastic flowers, or an elaborate swoosh of drapery. Everything looks both overly bright and covered in dust. These shop windows are informative, but they are not seductive. And to those of us living in this consumer-driven society, that in itself is fascinating.”
— Star Tribune
“This is one of those books which affirms the occasional power of images over even the most thoughtful worlds. The 176 photographs …speak out so loudly and clearly here…Without being repetitive, they manage to produce a holistic portrait of a society of privation.”
— The Washington Times
“His photos capture a world on the brink of collapse, one in which a strange blend of Communism and consumerism converge.”
— Wired.com
“There’s an undeniable wistfulness to the collection of images. It might raise some sense of guilt for us privileged Westerners, but perhaps we might find something quaint in the windows’ minimalism and homely design, their lack of urgency.”
— American Photo
“As the Soviet Union and its satellite states were crumbling, David Hlynsky took a novel approach to documenting the monumental changes…The 176 photographs in the book—of hair salons, toy stores, bookstores, art galleries, restaurants—offer a nostalgic look at a lost world.”
— John McMurtrie San Francisco Chronicle
“David Hlynsky's brief remarks on the opening pages of Window-Shopping Through the Iron Curtain—a beautifully made hardcover book featuring brilliant, sharp photographic prints—are nothing less than brilliant.”
— Boing Boing
“A heroic endeavor, both historically and artistically…The images are simple and respectful; they are of a piece with the poignant austerity of their subject matter. They are also artful: cleverly framed, and hip to the play of reflections and angles. Hlynsky caught that moment when the tectonic plates of the late twentieth century were shifting and the Cold War was ending. These windows, retrospectively picturesque, are the vestiges of a lost utopian ideology.”
— Design Observer
“Readers will be delighted by this opportunity to watch Nochlin’s ideas advance over the decades…Nochlin is far from a one-note theorist; her concerns are varied and her thinking incisive.”
— Publishers Weekly
“Nochlin writes with a dazzling mix of erudition and candor, but what’s most remarkable about her work is that it’s driven by an exhaustive investigation as to why and how certain artworks have been meaningful to her. Meditations on fashion, exclusion, decoration, bodies and touch run throughout Nochlin’s work. Ideas arrived at through scholarship recur in personal correspondence and anecdote. None of these essays seem dated. An inventor of feminist art history, Nochlin took the ’60s precept that ‘the personal is political’ to heart, but it’s her commitment to clarity, investigation and active thought that makes her work so contemporary today.”
— The New York Times Book Review
“Perhaps the best introduction to art historical analysis on the ‘social construction’ of the women artist, Women Artists: The Linda Nochlin Reader is also an outstanding overview of feminist art practice since the 1970s … an essential resource and a pleasure to read.”
— Women's Art Journal
“The book is a study of glamour, with yards of rich fabrics, enormous jewels and stunning designs.And the great stories—like the times YSL ripped off his tuxedo cummerbund to make a top for Grace Jones in the wings of her show—only undergird his genius.”
— TIME
“The book is filled with intriguing portraits depicting the vibrancy of the man, the artistry of his designs, and the tableaux in which he worked and lived. Lowit also memorably portrays the celebrities he befriended—Catherine Deneuve and Paloma Picasso among them—and the models he enlisted to wear his designs: Pat Cleveland, Jerry Hall, Iman, Stella Tennant, Laetitia Casta, and Kate Moss. Perhaps most notably, the tome shows Saint Laurent’s haute-couture and ready-to-wear pieces at their original debuts—a documentation of, and tribute to, the aesthetic transformations he shepherded over the years.”
— Surface
“[Roxanne Lowit] chronicles an iconic designer and an excessive time—the 1970s and ‘80s—with all their flourishes of ruffles, lace, brocade, Frida Kahlo floral headdresses, roses, appliqué—you name it.”
— WAG
“Vibrant, candid photos of the designer and his work from their meeting in 1978 through his last show in 2002.”
— W
“Lowit's photographic authority spans more than two decades and this new offering shows why she was his favorite lenswoman.”
— Art Desk Magazine
“Celebrates Lowit's photography from the height of Saint Laurent's career, including backstage shots of Jerry Hall, Linda Evangelista, Shalon Harlow, and much, much more.”
— New York Magazine: The Cut
“Dazzling.”
— The Society Diaries
“An inside peek into the life of the elusive legend, Lowit's photographs paint the portrait of a man who not only changed the way women dress, but the lives of the women around him as well.”
— The Real Real
“There are already countless reasons to adore Yves Saint Laurent, but fashion photographer Roxanne Lowit captures plenty more in her latest compilation of behind-the-scenes images of the iconic designer throughout his career. Case in point: the fact that for each of his runway shows, the iconic designer embellished his favorite look with a heart-shaped necklace, inspired by one of his early drawings.”
— StyleBistro
“[Roxanne Lowit] single-handedly invented backstage photography and captured the essence of the winning combination that is supermodels and design visionaries…The book is a visual feast.”
— V Magazine
“Nobody can capture the glamorous chaos and style intensity of backstage fashion shows like fashion and celebrity photographer Roxanne Lowit.”
— The Blot Magazine
“A must-have for any fashionista.”
— Windy City Times
“Gives and inside look at [Lowit's] personal photos of the legendary designer and his shows captured from 1978 to his final runway bow in 2002.”
— Harper's Bazaar
“[Lowit's] partnership with designer Yves Saint Laurent began in 1978 and continued through the end of his career, yielding stunning photographs of his couture creations worn by the top models of the day.”
— Architectural Digest
“The photos date from 1978 to Saint Laurent’s finale in 2002 and are very personal, as Lowit was a dear friend of the beloved designer.”
— Second City Style Review
“A perfect marriage of Lowit's ability to capture 'glamorous chaos' with Saint Laurent's ability, no matter what was going on.”
— The San Francisco Chronicle
“The kind of book that provides endless possibilities in terms of multiple readings…A timeline, a diary, a love letter to the designer's career.”
— New York Journal of Books
“Lavish images.”
— Library Journal
