Dandy: Fashion, Literature, Lifestyle

The word «dandy» still retains an inexplicable shade of mysterious charm, and the dandies themselves appear to us as eccentric aesthetes, creators of brilliant whims. But who can be called a modern dandy? How did the modern canon of male elegance arise? Why did dandies take turtles for walks? You will learn about these serious, and sometimes amusing, matters by reading Olga Weinstein's book «Dandy».

Among the main characters of the book are the famous British dandy George Brummell, the French fops Count d'Orsay, Barbe d'Oreville, and Charles Baudelaire, the decadents Oscar Wilde and Count Robert de Montesquieu. European dandyism is presented for the first time as a distinct cultural tradition, implying not only a fashionable suit but also an everyday lifestyle, an exquisite manner of behavior, special body techniques, and secret charisma. The book provides detailed accounts of English clubs and gentlemen's pranks, urban flânerie and «optical duels», social receptions and virtual aristocratism.

A special section is devoted to the history of Russian dandyism and domestic style icons.