A Reading List That Explores the Black Dandy Legacy

Ahead of the 2025 Met Gala themed Superfine: Tailoring Black Style, a curated reading list highlights the cultural and historical influence of Black dandyism.
Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity by Monica L. Miller
Explores how Black men use fashion as resistance, identity, and political expression, bridging history and modern style.

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Vintage Black Glamour: Gentlemen’s Quarters by Nichelle Gainer
A visual tribute to stylish Black men from the 19th century to the 1980s.

Fashioning Masculinities: The Art of Menswear by Rosalind McKever & Claire Wilcox (V&A Museum)
Menswear through cultural, historical, and artistic lenses.

Dandy Lion: The Black Dandy and Street Style Edited by Shantrelle P. Lewis
Black men reclaiming dandyism with bold flair and cultural pride.

Samuel Fosso: Autoportrait
A retrospective of self-portraits exploring African identity.

Sanlé Sory: Volta Photo 1965–85
Youth culture and style in Burkina Faso from the 1960s–1980s.

Mali Twist – Malick Sidibé
The exuberant nightlife and youth of post-independence Mali.

The Way We Wore: Black Style Then by Michael McCollom
A curated archive of everyday Black fashion from the 1940s–1980s.

The Birth of Cool: Style Narratives of the African Diaspora by Carol Tulloch
Examines how “cool” operates as an aesthetic and political form in African diasporic style.

Sapeurs: Ladies & Gentlemen of the Congo by Tariq Zaidi
The Congolese Sapeurs who transform fashion into powerful self-expression despite economic hardship.

As We Rise: Photography from the Black Atlantic Wedge Collection compiled by Dr. Kenneth Montague
Intimate and striking images by Black photographers celebrating identity and resistance.

Kehinde Wiley: A Portrait of a Young Gentleman by Kehinde Wiley
A reinterpretation of classical portraiture centering Black subjects in traditionally white artistic spaces.

The Black Book Edited by Toni Morrison (with Middleton A. Harris, Morris Levitt, & Roger Furman)
A landmark anthology of photos, poetry, ads, and artifacts chronicling Black American life.

Omar Victor Diop
Costume and photography to spotlight overlooked African figures in vivid self-portraits.

Gordon Parks: Stokely Carmichael and Black Power
A powerful visual essay capturing Stokely Carmichael and the Black Power movement.

Superfine: Tailoring Black Style (Upcoming)
The official Met Gala 2025 companion book, focusing on Black fashion as a tradition of craftsmanship and cultural assertion.

Source: BET