Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy

I got super excited when my library acquired this title, but I ended up returning it the next day. There are certain books which I consider to be the printed version of clickbait, and this was one of them. It seems like someone came up with the title or concept based on Google search predictions and then spent a couple of hours throwing together a slideshow before sending it to the printer

I had the opprotunity to see this exhibit in person and was amazed as to how they took a very simple concept and expaned upon it in a direction that I would never expect to be considered art. This show catalouge does a brillent job of expanding upon this, and is invaluable to any comic book fan still defending the art form against the stigma of it being "childish."

This book features garments by well-known fashion designers which are informed by themes which are also prevalent in depictions of comic-book superheroes. I was attracted to this book because of the fashion, and not primarily because of the link to superheroes. However I used to be a big graphic novel/comic book reader, so I had some background in the mythology behind the designs. This was the part of the book that I found disappointing, and why it does not get 5 stars. Firstly, the book is physically very attractive. The front and back covers are pressed metal, backed with heavy card. The spine is also heavy card, with cloth hinges, so the book easily opens completly flat. The card is over 1/8th of an inch thick (4mm) and so the book is very heavy, and isn't as full of pages as I originally thought when I picked it up. All the pages are super-glossy with what feels like a plastic coating, and this works very well with the theme of the book. The image quality is fantastic. The photos have a hyper-real quality, and are an excellent size. The pages of images are set out like panels of a comic book. The book starts with an essay by Michael Chabon which intersperses personal reflections of his childhood experiences with superheroes with a discussion of different aspects of secretiveness that are the essence of superheroes, such as "the secret anxiety of origin". This includes an anlysis of why fan reproductions of costumes are so unsatisfying. The rest of the book is divided into eight sections, each which looks at one aspect of the superhero as an entity. Each section has a short text essay (2 pages), examples of original superhero graphic art and costume PR shots from superhero TV shows and films (1, 2 or 3 pages), and then photos of the garments that explore this particular aspect (8 to 12 pages). The sections are; The Graphic Body (Superman, Spiderman, clothes using bright colours, superhero logos and comic-book imagery) The Patriotic Body (Captain America, Wonder Woman, clothes using the Stars and Stripes) The Virile Body (the Hulk, She-Hulk, the Thing, clothes with inbuilt padded muscles or that otherwise engage with masculinity) The Paradoxical Body (Catwoman, and clothes based on latex/patent leather/bondage gear) The Armoured Body (Batman, Iron Man, and clothes featuring metal/armour) The Aerodynamic Body (the Flash, and performance sportswear like the Speedo Fastskin) The Mutant Body (X-Men, and clothes that distort or camoflage the body) The Postmodern Body (the Punisher, Ghost Rider, and clothes that reflect death/flames/cyber-punk) Almost all the clothes are from the 1990s and 2000s, with just a couple from the late 1980s, and one image from 1973. The complete list of designers whose work is inluded: Rudi Gernreich, As Four, Thierry Mugler, Alexander McQueen, John Galliano, Walter Van Beirendonck, Hussein Chalayan, Atair Aerospace Inc, Speedo, Rei Kawakubo for Speedo, Nike, Eiko Ishioka for Descente, Jean Paul Gaultier, Gareth Pug