Colin McDowell

McDowell's essay exploring the life of fashion designer Jean Paul Galutier is well written and seemingly complete, but I question whether the format of the book is correct for it. The writing and photos seem totally divorced from each other in that they rarely line up, and McDowell makes so few references to visuals that his essay could stand alone. If anything, it could be better served by an appendix of specific photos that are directly referenced rather than the random selection of interspersed (and non-referential) imagery.… (más)

This book reviews the history of shoes from ancient times to the present, concentrating most heavily on "western" styles. The text is quite substantial and informative from a writer and a publisher with good reputations. It is lavishly illustrated in both color and black & white with photographs of shoes and reproductions of historic illustrations. As compared with catalogs and chiefly pictorial collections, it has fewer shoes and more context illustrating social attitudes and people wearing shoes and much more information. There are sections on some of the most famous contemporary designers.

The is a detailed table of contents and a substantial index, but no bibliography… (más)