Dubbed the enfant terrible of fashion ever since his prêt-à-porter collections were first shown in 1976, Jean Paul Gaultier, whose avant-garde and bold fashions very early on reflected the issues facing contemporary society, is one of the leading designers in recent decades.Published by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and Abrams in conjunction with the first-ever retrospective on Gaultier, this stunning hardcover book in a slipcase explores the ties between the designer and the pop/rock music scene, film, and dance, and sheds light on his sources of inspiration, which are as eclectic as they are impertinent.The first major monograph on Gaultier brings together archival documents and over fifty interviews with Gaultierœs muses and colleagues, as well as the artists he has created costumes for: Pedro Almodóvar, Catherine Deneuve, Madonna, Helen Mirren, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, Martin Margiela, Pierre Cardin, Dita Von Teese, Marion Cotillard, Kylie Minogue, Polly Mellen, and Tom Ford, to name just a few.It features many previously unpublished illustrations thanks to the collaboration of renowned fashion photographers and the Maison Jean Paul Gaultier. The publication also includes two interviews with Gaultier, one by Florence Müller, art historian, and the other by Thierry-Maxime Loriot, as well as an interview with Valerie Steele, fashion historian and director of New Yorkœs Museum at Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT). An essay written by Suzy Menkes looks at Gaultierœs fashion shows and examines their visionary reflection of societyœs evolution over the past thirty-five years.

Catalog of an exhibition hold at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts from June 17 to Oct. 2, 2011, at Dallas Museum of Art from Nov.13, 2011 to Feb. 12, 2012, at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco from March 24 to August 19, 2012, at the Fundación Mapfre-Instituto de Cultura (Madrid) from Sept. 26 to Nov. 18, 2012 and at Kunsthal Rotterdam from Feb. 9 to May 12, 2013. Cf. p. [9]

The sayings of a humanist couturier / Nathalie Bondil -- The power of the show / Suzy Menkes -- Gaul'tier by Jean Paul / Florence Müller -- Haute couture salon atmosphere / Thierry-Maxime Loriot -- The rise of a couturier / Thierry-Maxime Loriot -- Jean Paul Gaultier's Paris : Introduction ; Plates ; The true story of Jean Paul Gaultier / Brigitte Cornand and Jean-François Bizot ; Interviews : Évelyne Gaultier, Pierre Cardin, Aïtize Hanson, Frédérique Lorca, Farida Khelfa, Martin Margiela, Micheline Presle, Tonie Marshall, Yvette Horner, Carine Roitfeld, Ines de la Fressange, Catherine Deneuve, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy -- The boudoir : Introduction ; Plates ; Interviews : Valerie Steele, Dita Von Tesse, Mr. Pearl, Juliette Binoch, Jacques Cavalier, Erin O'Connor, Madonna ; Madonna: as seen and dressed by Jean Paul Gaultier / Jean Paul Gaultier with a little help from Alain Wais ; Madonna: pop model / Françoise-Marie Santucci ; Interviews: Arianne Phillips -- Skin deep : Introduction ; Plates ; Interviews : Polly Mellen, Tanel Bedrossiantz, Denis Gagnon, Tom Ford, Boy George, Francis Kurkdjian, Marion Cotillard, Ève Salvail, Pierre et Gilles -- Urban jungle : Introduction ; Plates ; Interviews : Arielle Dombasle, Stéphene Sednaoui, Odile Gilbert, Stephen Jones -- Metropolis : Introduction ; Plates ; Interviews : Peter Stuart, Antoine de Caunes, Mylène Farmer, Kylie Minogue, Régine Chopinot, Angelin Preljocaj, Marc Caro and Jean-Pierre Jeunet ; Interview with Jean Paul Gaultier from The story of the fifth element / Luc Besson ; Interviews : Helen Mirren, Nicole Kidman, Josiane Balasko, Denis Marleau and Stéphanie Jasmin, Victoria Abril, Rossy de Palma, Pedro Almodóvar -- Timeline of Jean Paul Gaultier collections 1977-2011 -- Biography.