Libertine practices have long been associated with transgression and social 'deviance'. This innovative book is the first to focus fully on the relationship between libertinage as a social phenomenon and as a form of fashion.

Taking the reader from early modernity to the present day, Adam Geczy and Vicki Karaminas reveal how the connection between clothing and the taboo, the erotic, and forbidden is at the heart of 'libertine fashion'.

Moving from the decadent court of Louis XV to the catwalks of the 21st century, Libertine Fashion examines literary and sartorial figures ranging from the Marquis de Sade and Lord Byron to Oscar Wilde and Jean Paul Gaultier. Focusing on libertinism as a sartorial identity and subcultural way of life, the book traces the genealogy of the concept through French femme fatales, the Gothic vampires of 19th century literature, and hedonistic fin de siecle dandies. The second section moves up to the present, using case studies to consider 1970s punk styling, the sexual and commodity fetishism of designers like Helmut Newton and Guy Bourdin, and the 'pornochic' of Rick Owens and Vivienne Westwood.

Looking at libertine practices and appearances with fresh eyes, this original work affords a new way of understanding transgressive subcultural style, and of the role of sexuality and clothing. Both accessible and deeply researched, it uses a multidisciplinary approach that draws on historical literature, film, and popular culture. Offering a historical and philosophical grounding in contemporary forms of identity and dress, it is essential reading for students and scholars of fashion, gender, and cultural studies.