The Black Dandy Decoded: A 2025 Met Gala Reading List
We’ve already gushed over our favorite Black dandies, from Du Bois in top hats to Lebron in Thom Browne. But now? It’s time to hit the books. Whether you're trying to impress at a Met Gala watch party or just want to flex your fashion IQ, we've rounded up a required reading list to get you fluent in Black dandyism.
This curated reading list serves as a primer for anyone looking to explore Black style's intellectual and cultural foundations. It includes Monica L. Miller’s seminal text Slaves to Fashion, which laid the academic groundwork for this year’s Costume Institute exhibition, as well as richly illustrated photo books documenting diasporic dress and everyday Black elegance. Lush street-style coffee table books document dandies in the wild, photo books from visual auteurs like Isaac Julien and Iké Udé, and art books from painters capture the sophistication and subversion of Black style.
Trust us—this is the chicest homework you’ll ever do. Scroll on for your required reading materials.
Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity
Explores how Black men use fashion as a form of resistance, identity, and political expression—merging historical context with modern-day style through the lens of "the Black Dandy."
Vintage Black Glamour: Gentlemen's Quarters
A visual celebration of stylish, iconic Black men from the 19th century to the 1980s, capturing timeless elegance through rare photographs and historical commentary.
Fashioning Masculinities: The Art of Menswear
This V&A Museum companion book redefines menswear through a cultural lens—tracing historical, artistic, and contemporary expressions of masculinity in fashion.
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Dandy Lion: The Black Dandy and Street Style
Showcases young Black men across the globe reclaiming dandyism with bold flair and cultural pride, challenging stereotypes and celebrating sartorial self-expression.
Samuel Fosso: Autoportrait
A striking retrospective of Fosso’s self-portraits that blur the line between performance and photography, using costume and character to explore postcolonial African identity.
Sanlé Sory: Volta Photo 1965–85
A vibrant visual archive of everyday life, youth culture, and style in 1960s–80s Burkina Faso, through the lens of Sanlé Sory’s studio photography.
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Mali Twist – Malick Sidibé
The Way We Wore: Black Style Then
Curated from personal archives, this collection captures Black fashion from the 1940s to the 1980s—proof that Black style has always been innovative and trendsetting.
The Birth of Cool: Style Narratives of the African Diaspora
A scholarly examination of how “cool” operates within African diasporic style—across fashion, music, and performance—as both aesthetic and political tool.
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Sapeurs: Ladies & Gentlemen of the Congo
A powerful photo book capturing the Congolese dandies known as Sapeurs, who turn fashion into personal and political art despite economic hardship.
As We Rise: Photography from the Black Atlantic
Curated from the Wedge Collection, this book weaves together intimate, powerful images by Black photographers from across the diaspora, celebrating identity and resistance.
Kehinde Wiley: A Portrait of a Young Gentleman
Wiley reinterprets Thomas Gainsborough’s iconic portrait with a contemporary Black subject, continuing his mission to center Black presence in classical art traditions.
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The Black Book
A groundbreaking visual anthology of Black life in America—created by Toni Morrison and others—blending archival photos, ads, ephemera, and poetry in a rich cultural tapestry.
Omar Victor Diop
Gordon Parks: Stokely Carmichael and Black Power
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Superfine: Tailoring Black Style (Coming Soon)
Set to explore the craftsmanship, flair, and political edge of Black style—this upcoming release promises to position Black fashion not as trend but tradition.