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Extreme Beauty in Vogue

In coordination with the Milanese exhibition of the same name, Extreme Beauty in Vogue is a fascinating book that explores the portrayal of beauty in Vogue magazine over the past 75 years.

The exhibit was produced in collaboration with Dolce & Gabbana (who penned the foreword), and both this book and the collection in Milan contain some of the most iconic photographs of fashion history - the work of masters including Edward Steichen, Helmut Newton, Irving Penn, Annie Leibovitz and Steven Klein.

Phyllis Posnick, Vogue's Executive Fashion Editor, took the helm for this project, creating a visual timeline of the direction of fashion over the last eight decades in Extreme Beauty in Vogue.

After the opening essay by Eva Respini, the book delves into a section called "Icons." Following are striking full-page color photographs from Irving Penn. Next is a section on nudes and the human form called "Bodies, Unleashed" - a collection of Vogue's most daring explorations of the beauty of humanity.

The final sections are entitled "Heads" and "Bodies, Restrained" (a fascinating juxtaposition to the earlier chapter).

For those of us who can't make it to the exhibit in Milan, Extreme Beauty in Vogue is the next best thing!

© EXTREME BEAUTY IN VOGUE, edited by Phyllis Posnick with an essay by Eva Respini, published by Skira Editore, 2009.

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