Dior RTW Spring 2023
Maria Grazia Chiuri and Catherine de Medici: two Italian women in Paris, centuries apart, connected on the Dior runway on Tuesday.
Chiuri once flirted with historical costumes, but she always resisted being dragged into a time tunnel , determined to dress women to meet the challenges of the here and now.
Her spring 2023 collection, staged around a gothic-style cave made of paper cut-outs by French artist Eva Jospin, sparked a dialogue between past and present full of bluster. Think shaded hoop skirts, lace shirt dresses and elasticated corsets, pulled on over cargo pants with the ease of a tank top.
"The idea is to mix natural elements with construction, and create a baroque ball to inside the Tuileries Gardens, but in a contemporary way,” said Chiuri in preview.
The designer was fascinated by how the clothes contributed to the myth of the Renaissance queen, to who is credited with popularizing high heels for women and bringing to France an embroidery technique that still bears his name.
"I understood very well how much she also used clothes to express her power, and the relationship between fashion and power," she said. "I found it very interesting, and also because it helped me understand the relationship between France and Italy. This woman was really a link between the two cultures.”
The collection referenced these points both literally and metaphorically, Chiuri deftly weaving in elements of the Dior archive. She's worked curved heels, inspired by Roger Vivier's designs for Dior in the '60s, in everything from multi-strap boots to wooden clogs that are sure to become one of the season's "It" shoes.
The embroidery, which Chiuri made one of her signatures at the French fashion house, is appeared on items like a deceptively simple raffia coat with an intricate 3D floral pattern inspired by founder Christian Dior's Miss Dior dress, or jeans embellished with the geometric patterns of Catherine de' Medici stitch, also known as de punto madam.
Speaking of fashion diplomacy, the designer had her own political message, sending models to the catwalk in various states of undress. Skirts opened up to reveal matching boxers, while eyelet petticoats were paired with skimpy bra tops.
"I'm so frustrated that at this historic moment we can't show bodies, which 'They're all obsessed with what's going on around our bodies, so the idea is to show the body,' said Chiuri, who has made feminism a cornerstone of her tenure at Dior.
The fact that the show took place in the Tuileries Garden, a park originally designed , was poignant by de' Medici. In a reflection of her own journey, Chiuri revived a vintage Dior scarf printed with a map of Paris and used it on items such as a trench coat, hoodie and bomber jacket.
"Probably one of the first things I saw when I arrived in Paris were the references I found in Italy. We have a different way of living the space and living these references,” she reflected.
Her "obsession", as she begins her seventh year at Dior, is to foster dialogue between his own culture and that of the French fashion house, which seems to reach a crescendo with this exercise in clashing the times.
"I really appreciate what I learned in Paris, but at the same time I think I have gave them back a different way of seeing themselves, what they do and how they can grow for the future," she said. "Sometimes it's really helpful to have someone come from another point of view, who can see things in a new way."
Maria Grazia Chiuri and Catherine de Medici: two Italian women in Paris, centuries apart, connected on the Dior runway on Tuesday.
Chiuri once flirted with historical costumes, but she always resisted being dragged into a time tunnel , determined to dress women to meet the challenges of the here and now.
Her spring 2023 collection, staged around a gothic-style cave made of paper cut-outs by French artist Eva Jospin, sparked a dialogue between past and present full of bluster. Think shaded hoop skirts, lace shirt dresses and elasticated corsets, pulled on over cargo pants with the ease of a tank top.
"The idea is to mix natural elements with construction, and create a baroque ball to inside the Tuileries Gardens, but in a contemporary way,” said Chiuri in preview.
The designer was fascinated by how the clothes contributed to the myth of the Renaissance queen, to who is credited with popularizing high heels for women and bringing to France an embroidery technique that still bears his name.
"I understood very well how much she also used clothes to express her power, and the relationship between fashion and power," she said. "I found it very interesting, and also because it helped me understand the relationship between France and Italy. This woman was really a link between the two cultures.”
The collection referenced these points both literally and metaphorically, Chiuri deftly weaving in elements of the Dior archive. She's worked curved heels, inspired by Roger Vivier's designs for Dior in the '60s, in everything from multi-strap boots to wooden clogs that are sure to become one of the season's "It" shoes.
The embroidery, which Chiuri made one of her signatures at the French fashion house, is appeared on items like a deceptively simple raffia coat with an intricate 3D floral pattern inspired by founder Christian Dior's Miss Dior dress, or jeans embellished with the geometric patterns of Catherine de' Medici stitch, also known as de punto madam.
Speaking of fashion diplomacy, the designer had her own political message, sending models to the catwalk in various states of undress. Skirts opened up to reveal matching boxers, while eyelet petticoats were paired with skimpy bra tops.
"I'm so frustrated that at this historic moment we can't show bodies, which 'They're all obsessed with what's going on around our bodies, so the idea is to show the body,' said Chiuri, who has made feminism a cornerstone of her tenure at Dior.
The fact that the show took place in the Tuileries Garden, a park originally designed , was poignant by de' Medici. In a reflection of her own journey, Chiuri revived a vintage Dior scarf printed with a map of Paris and used it on items such as a trench coat, hoodie and bomber jacket.
"Probably one of the first things I saw when I arrived in Paris were the references I found in Italy. We have a different way of living the space and living these references,” she reflected.
Her "obsession", as she begins her seventh year at Dior, is to foster dialogue between his own culture and that of the French fashion house, which seems to reach a crescendo with this exercise in clashing the times.
"I really appreciate what I learned in Paris, but at the same time I think I have gave them back a different way of seeing themselves, what they do and how they can grow for the future," she said. "Sometimes it's really helpful to have someone come from another point of view, who can see things in a new way."
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