It takes a certain kind of confidence for a designer to stage a collection in front of one of the most striking buildings in modern architecture, overlooking the magnificent cliffs and waterfront...
Dior F/W2017 Haute Couture Collection
It's impossible to overestimate the impact of Christian Dior's first collection when it was shown in Paris in 1947. The global community had just emerged from the devastation of war, and it was a time of rebuilding and rapid economic growth. Women who had entered the workplace to fulfill manufacturing jobs in support of the war effort were longing for glamour and a return to their traditional feminine roles. Dior's new look was the answer. His iconic silhouette– cinched waists, voluminous hips swathed in taffeta, and sharply accented busts– was nothing short of revolutionary.
Seventy years later, Dior's Artistic Director, Maria Grazia Chiuri found herself in the unenviable position of designing the label's Autumn/Winter 2017-2018 haute couture collection. It's like a contemporary pop singer recording a song by Marvin Gaye or Frank Sinatra. One must pay homage to the legacy, yet venture far enough from the prototype to suggest innovation, lest she be accused of mere imitation. Like I said, it's an unenviable task. But if anyone is up for the challenge of steering the most storied fashion house of the 20th Century into a bold new future in the 21st, then surely it is Chiuri.
Born and educated in Rome, Chiuri spent twenty years as a designer at Valentino before her appointment at Dior last summer, the first female Artistic Director in the company's history. Like Monsieur Dior himself, Chiuri's skills as a couturier are unimpeachable: the meticulous body-skimming tailoring, the selection of fabrics that float with the body, the lush details which add sophistication but never detract from the silhouette.
These attributes were present in all 66 of the looks that Chiuri presented in the gardens of Les Arts Decoratifs in Paris on July 4th, and many of her garments were explicitly inspired by original designs by Christian Dior. The strapless evening dresses are particular standouts. An ankle-length ball gown with a tulip bust in deep grey silk would boost a red carpet ingenue into full-fledged global stardom. A lace embroidered evening dress in shades of grey with a scalloped hem screams Hampton's garden party. A silk evening dress with a sheer herringbone design, translucent bust and zig-zag hem is edgy yet sophisticated, in a Rihanna at the Grammies sort of way. A fringy embroidered cocktail dress with a deep v-neck and sheer skirt would be a stunning red carpet look for Jennifer Lopez. Yes, I know, a burlap sack would be stunning on Jennifer Lopez, lest we digress. Similarly, this fringe number would be a show-stopper on anyone lithe and daring enough to wear it.
Like Mr. Dior, Ms. Chiuri has a particular fascination with jacketed suits. But in contrast to Monsieur's calf-bearing designs, Chiuri's collection features mostly ankle-length garments. Paired with her penchant for wool and a palette along the grey spectrum, Chiuri's designs sometimes venture from Dior's celebration of life and fertility, and almost suggest a wartime rations sensibility, as if the garments were made from surplus army blankets.
For women of the world who celebrate life at fabulous galas and red carpet events, there will be no shortage of divine options from Chiuri's couture collection for Dior this season. And let those of us who critique Chiuri's aesthetic and compare her to Monsieur Dior be damned. For Dior was a man with a vision to create clothes that every woman in the world would want to wear, and seventy years later, the fashion house he built remains one of the most storied on the planet. And while the book of Dior has many chapters by various authors, Chiuri has earned her place among them. Her collection was indeed appropriately innovative while paying respect to the legacy, an unenviable task which Chiuri has approached with courage and grace. Monsieur Dior would surely approve.
WRITTEN BY KAREN FRAGALA-SMITH
EDITED BY HOLLIS DE LANEY
PHOTO CREDIT: DIOR
related posts
3.1 PHILLIP LIM FASHION STORY "SUNDAY MORNING"
FASHION STORY “Sunday Morning” is now available!
Check inside for the Full Page Editorial.
DIOR X RIHANNA
Rihanna creates new Star Trek inspired sunglasses with Christian Dior.
TWELV MAGAZINE PARTY "BLONDE SASHIMI @HAPPY ENDING "
Find and enjoy more photos on TWELV Facebook
MARC JACOBS S/S2016 EYEWEAR COLLECTION
Eyewear is a stroke of color that accents an outfit. It’s also one of the few accessories where irregular shapes and designs and quirkiness thrive.
FASHION STORY "TUZA"
FASHION STORY “TUZA” is now available!
Check inside for the Full Page Editorial.
Citizens of Humanity's Fabric Brand Director, HIRO IKUTA
What sparks would be created between Japanese heritage and California sunshine?
COS LAUNCHES SS16 ISSUE OF COS MAGAZINE
COS, a London based brand known for its reinvented classics and modern trends, has just published the SS16 issue of their bi-annual...
FASHION STORY "CARMEN & CARMEN"
Check inside for the Full Page Editorial.
MAVI FEATHER COLLECTION S/S2016
Mavi, who designs a full collection of denim and casual fashion founded in Istanbul in 1991, just launched “The premium ...
YOHJI YAMAMOTO FASHION STORY "TOKYO YANKI"
YOHJI YAMAMOTO FASHION STORY "TOKYO YANKI" is now available!
Check inside for the Full Page Editorial.
Yigal Azrouël NYFW F/W2016 Ready-to-Wear
Yigal Azrouël NYFW F/W 2016 Ready-to-Wear
Jill Stuart NYFW F/W2016 Ready-To-Wear
Jill Stuart F/W 2016 Ready-To-Wear
TWELV NYFW F/W 2016 PARTY @ APARTMENT 7
Find and enjoy more photos on TWELV FACEBOOK below.
Christian Siriano NYFW F/W2016 Ready-to-Wear /Backstage
Christian Siriano F/W 2016 Ready to Wear
KAREN WALKER FASHION STORY "BEHIND BLUE EYE"
KAREN WALKER FASHION STORY "BEHIND BLUE EYE" is now available!
Check inside for the Full Page Editorial.
Downtown Culture Club Fashion Season Opening Party
Find and enjoy more photos on TWELV Facebook
Louis Vuitton “SERIES 4”: The New Norm
Louis Vuitton “SERIES 4” The New Norm
DOMINIC LOUIS FASHION STORY "HEY HO LET'S GO"
DOMINIC LOUIS Fashion Story "HEY HO LET'S GO" is now available!
Check inside for the Full Page Editorial.
CITIZENS OF HUMANITY FASHION STORY "ALMOST FAMOUS"
CITIZENS of HUMANITY Fashion Story "ALMOST FAMOUS" is now available!
Check inside for the Full Page Editorial.
Apple and Hermès Unveil the Apple Watch Hermès Collection
September 9, 2015 — Apple and Hermès are creating a unique style for apple watch. Hermès has designed an amazing leather bands in distinctive styles.
BERENIK FASHION STORY "FALLING UP"
BERENIK Fashion Story "FALLING UP" is now available!
Check inside for the Full Page Editorial
Back Stage #8: Top Gun
"Behind the scenes of TWELV Magazine's inspired creations"
TWELV MAGAZINE PARTY @ TIKI TABU / SIXTY LES
Right in the middle of the an indecisive November, TWELV Magazine invited the beautiful folks of New York City to celebrate Fall in its latest party at TIKI TABU...
KAT GRAHAM EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW / FASHION STORY "KAT GRAHAM 1991"
Kat Graham Exclusive Interview / Fashion Story "KAT GRAHAM 1991" is now available!
Check inside for the Full Page Editorial
Gian Kamal Fashion Story "In The Woods"
Exclusive Gian Kamal Fashion Story "In The Woods" is now available!
Check inside for the Full Page Editorial
TWELV NYFW S/S 2016 Party @ TIKI TABU / SIXTY LES
Nothing better than a fashion party that has an amazing music and rooftop drinks to relive the hassle of fashion week.
Jill Stuart NYFW S/S2016 Ready-To-Wear
The 70’s are back with Jill Stuart Spring/Summer 2016 collection with high-waists and bell-bottoms that are to die for. The designer has traveled back in time with a range of simple suits and...
Marc Jacobs NYFW S/S2016 Ready-To-Wear
“I have always found comfort in the familiar and the frequent return to the things that move me visually, emotionally and intellectually.”
TWELV / ARC TOKYO EXCLUSIVE PARTIES IN JAPAN
ARC is a social hub of entertainment, a club, and a bar in the heart of Tokyo's fashion district Omotesando.
Yigal Azrouël NYFW S/S2016 Ready-To-Wear
“It’s about going from step to step and showing that progression.”
MARC JACOBS HOSTS "GLOSS" BOOK EVENT BY Roger Padilha and Mauricio Padilha
GIUSEPPE ZANOTTI F/W2015 AD CAMPAIGN
When it comes to designing shoes, few designers are as artistic as Giuseppe Zanotti.
Bubblegum Pinky Rings by David Yurman
The Bubblegum Pinky Rings by David Yurman is a unique fine jewelry ring that has been designed by an elite crowd. A king wears his family signet ring on his pinky.
CHRISTIAN SIRIANO Fashion Story "NEVER TALK WITH STRANGERS"
Exclusive CHRISTIAN SIRIANO Fashion Story "NEVER TALK WITH STRANGERS" is now available.
Check inside for the Full Page Editorial