Charles James

Charles James is fashion's best-kept secret. Though largely unknown to the general public, James is one of the most greatly admired couturiers within the fashion world itself. The inventor in the 1930s of American haute couture, his special talent was to combine the science of design with the eroticism of fashion. With his magnificent sculptured dresses he created an ideal of female beauty and an unrestrained use of romantic, luxurious fabrics. A difficult, temperamental man, James died poor and unfeted, but his work has continued to bewitch, influence, and inspire subsequent generations of designers.