Publisher's Synopsis
Robert O'Byrne traces the trajectory of couture from its heyday in the sixties to its eventual demise. He examines the place of the clothing industry in Irish fashion and highlights the key roles played by tweed, linen and knitwear in the evolution of an identifiably Irish style and he salutes the 1990s designers of ready-to-wear fashion. After a Fashion looks at the innovators: Sybil Connolly and Neilli Mulcahy, whose adaptations of Irish vernacular materials made Dublin a recognised centre for couture; Michael Mortell who brought an international twist to Irish fashion; Lainey Keogh, whose sensual blend of the artisanal and the technological revitalised Irish knitwear. The careers of established designers Ib Jorgensen, Paul Costelloe, John Rocha and Louise Kennedy are charted, as are the achievements of such specialist designers as Philip Treacy and Slim Barrett. We are reminded of the designers who left Ireland and made their mark on world fashion elsewhere and we are introduced to the new lights of the industry working at home and abroad.;After a Fashion is a celebration of an industry working against the odds, and a salute to the creators of a distinctive style that has gone all over the world.
