For over 35 years, Prosper Assouline and Azzedine AlaÏa were close friends. As a tribute to their friendship, Prosper Assouline decided to republish Assouline’s 1992 “Collector’s Book” on Alaïa’s Summer 1992 show that lays bare the work of a creative artist. Never before had a haute couture designer given such an in-depth view of the secret alchemy that goes into a fashion show. Azzedine Alaïa was not one to do things the way everyone else had done, so it was fitting that he would be the first to produce such a work.
What this book offers is the complete story of a fashion show from start to finish, including: everyone participating, all of the objects required, and every item of décor or inspiration which helped form Alaïa’s work. It is like a seismographic recording of all the emotions, colors, fabrics, and shapes that go into creating a fashion show. The French call such a show a “collection,” hence the title Livre de Collection, which offers an inside view of an intensely creative universe.