CAVANAGH John (Designer)

John Cavanagh is photographed with a model wearing his full, yet immaculately tailored coat. Its black cuffs, plain collar and geometric configuration of buttons are its only details beyond top-stitched, princess-line seams into which the pockets disappear. His was an international training, firstly with Molyneux on his return from Paris and then at Pierre Balmain. In 1952 Cavanagh opened his own couture house in London, making clothes with international appeal. He noted, "A couturier worth his name must design in the world-stream of design change, but direct it to the lives of his clients that make this business exist". Cavanagh was at the centre of London's small made-to-measure society that continued to dress the English season, despite becoming engulfed by cheap imitations. In 1964 he said, "Couture will and must continue. It is the lifeblood of the ready-to-wear". 

Also look up for Balmain, Dior, French, Molyneux, Morton

CASTILLO Antonio (Designer)

The risqué potential of the black lace used in Castillo's A-line dress is at once removed by its stately aura. A black hat, moulded into the shape of a mantilla comb, lends grace, while the model maintains an imperial pose, turning her back to the camera as if to shake hands with foreign heads of state. Born of a noble Spanish family, regality and dignity surround every one of Antonio Castillo's designs - his training was as accessory designer for Chanel and as designer at the distinguished fashion houses Piguet and Lanvin. Castillo left Spain for France in 1936 at the onset of the Spanish Civil War. He was no Courrèges, indulging in avant-garde couture for the younger generation of customers in the 1960s; instead, he subtly instilled a sense of innovation into mature, seemingly classic looks, which resulted in a quiet, exceedingly tidy style. 

Also look up for Ascher, Beretta, Lanvin, Piguet, G. Smith

DE CASTELBAJAC Jean-Charles (Designer)

The models' expressions suit Jean-Charles de Castelbajac's joke: dresses that imitate the front of a red telephone, a robot, a pack of cigarettes, a can of soup, a petrol can or even a toothpaste tube. His simple, enveloping clothes remain true to the uncut cloth. Thick, felt-like fabrics have preoccupied him since he was at boarding school, where he cut his first garment out of a blanket. He was one of France's new age of ready-to-wear designers in the 1960s and has worked with Pop Art themes such as Warhol's Campbell's soup can, which he printed onto a cylindrical dress in 1984. Inspired by the work of Paco Rabanne and Pierre Cardin, which he said surpassed the work of artists working on the theme of futurism, he has been called "the space-age Bonnie Cashin". In 2006 the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, featured a display that showed the variety of his work, including jackets made from toys, parachute ballgowns and Pop Art dresses. 

Also look up for Cardin, Ettedgui, Farhi, Rabanne, Warhol

CASSINI Oleg (Designer)

In the 1960s, Cassini was the American designer most identified with Jacqueline Kennedy as First Lady, an evening dress for whom is illustrated here. Stung by criticism of her costly wardrobe (largely from Balenciaga and Givenchy), even before her husband was elected president, she chose to consider Cassini her official designer. Although her mother-in-law and aides secretly helped her to continue to acquire clothes by Grès, Chanel and Givenchy, Cassini's sleek minimalism supplemented that elite wardrobe and the American designer was publicly acclaimed. By the conspicuous association with Kennedy, Cassini became a powerful figure in 1960s style, offering youthful, smooth modernity; his A-line dresses and suits of a semi-fitted top over a slim skirt corresponded to Parisian designs. Cassini respected Mrs Kennedy's demureness, while letting each garment stand out in a manner appropriate for a First Lady. 

Also look up for Givenchy, Grès, Kennedy

CASHIN Bonnie (Designer)

A capacious, grey cashmere poncho trimmed in leather typifies Bonnie Cashin's distinctive contribution to American sportswear. Attuned to dancers and their motion, the variable weather and outdoor life of California, and to Hollywood and the movies (she was a designer for Twentieth Century Fox), Cashin created ingenious sportswear. She often used global references but always remained faithful to the pragmatic and contemporary woman. Separates were versatile and luxurious; sizing was easy, given that most tops, dresses, skirts and trousers wrapped or tied, allowing for accommodation for many body types. Cashin used layering before it became an accepted and expected part of women's lives. Toggles and luggage hardware became practical fastenings for her bags and leather-trimmed wools. Cashin is regarded, along with Claire McCardell, as the mother of American sportswear. 

Also look up for Karan, A. Klein, McCardell, Maxwell, Schön

CARTIER Louis François (Jewellery designer)

This brooch, designed as a flamingo in characteristic pose, has plumage set with calibré-cut emeralds, rubies and sapphires. Cabochon citrine and sapphire are used for the beak, a sapphire for the eye, with the head, neck, body and legs pavé-set with brilliant-cut diamonds. It was created in 1940 by Jeanne Toussaint for the jewellery firm Cartier, founded in Paris in 1847 by Louis François Cartier. This jewel was designed for the Duchess of Windsor, who owned one of the finest jewellery collections of the 1940s. It was chosen by the Duke of Windsor, who spent a great deal of time choosing jewels to adorn her clothes, often designed as a setting for a particular gem. Pieces such as this one (resold in 1987 for $470,000) were still considered avant-garde many years after their design and were the precursors of a new vocabulary in bijouterie after the Second World War. 

Also look up for Bulgari, Butler, Tiffany, Windsor

CARNEGIE Hattie (Retailer)

The model wears a gown by Hattie Carnegie. Although she has a reputation as a revered designer, Carnegie never actually made a dress. She was a retailer who delivered a current look, such as this strapless, wasp-waisted silhouette derived from Dior, a shape that formed the hourglass figure of the 1950s. Carnegie's reputation was legendary. She employed designers of the calibre of Norman Norell, Travis Banton, Jean Louis and Claire McCardell; the "Carnegie look" was a sophisticated simplification of European design that was favored by American society and high-profile clients such as the Duchess of Windsor. In 1947, Life declared Carnegie (née Kanengeiser, but she took the name of the richest American of the time) to be the "undisputed leader" of American fashion, with more than one hundred stores swelling her product, and her imprimatur the keenest sign of prestige in American clothing. 

Also look up for Banton, Daché, Louis, Norell, Trigère, Windsor