The symbolics of a Parisian fashion house launching a collection of photography books only to present James Barnor first is particularly powerful. Choosing one of the rare African, near centenarian pillars of international photography, is a decision to jumpstart this collection with a body of work that leaves of the confines of the already beaten path, a work in which, fashion, color and the modern woman become indissociable in its storytelling. This symbolics gain traction specifically because it features a black modern woman, from the 1950s to the 1970s, a person rarely chosen to embody modernity at the time. The selection of images collected in this book display the singularity of the discourse of a portrait painter’s for whom fashion holds many layers. The garment, above being an accessory, is a social language. A uniform designates an institution, a kente cloth - a belonging, a tailor - a status and the length of a dress is the mesure of an era.