Maria Grazia Chiuri's creations for the Christian Dior Haute Couture Spring/Summer 24 collection set the tone beautifully for Paris Couture Fashion Week. Here's everything you need to know ICYMI.
The set
Maria Grazia Chiuri always collaborates with a female artist on her sets and this Couture show was no exception. Artist Isabella Ducrot use the catwalk as her stage, creating an installation called Big Aura.
Located in the the Rodin Museum gardens, the purpose-built set featured walls adorned with abstract depictions of 23 dresses, each some five metres high, arranged on a grid of irregular black lines to illustrate warp and weft - and highlight the symbolic aura of each garment.
The inspiration
Some critics argue that while trends come and go, there is never any newness in fashion, and while that might be true to a certain degree, the mark of a true genius is being able to honour a house's sartorial heritage, all the while re-imagining it for the modern woman.
Maria Grazia Chiuri is such a genius. For Haute Couture SS24, she was inspired by the Big Aura that pervades haute couture, where no new take on originals is ever the same, each piece a unique work of art.
Take the La Cigale dress for example. It was first designed by the man himself, Christian Dior, for the Autumn/Winter 1952. For SS24, Chiuri re-imagines its sculptural elegance on coats, skirts and dresses, in a striking palette of shades and iridescent fabrics such as moiré, a fabric reminiscent of waves.
The standout looks
A muted palette of beige, white, grey and burgundy (with the exception of Looks 27 and 53, which were gold) served only to enhance the craftsmanship and architectural elegance of each piece.
Reproducing - but not copying - the geometric lines of La Cigale, the Creative Director added imposing collars to coats, cut-out details to skirt and extra textire and layers to dresses, trousers and jackets.
Couture collections always highlight the beautiful craftsmanship which is at the core of a house such as Dior, and this could be seen in the Millefiori motif punctuating the entire surface of a yellow moiré dress, the feathered cape, the embroidered double organza dress.
Then we have the quiet heroes, the pieces I know will be worn again and again for seasons to come: the belted trench, the voluminous pleated skirt, the tailored jacket.
The celebrities
It wouldn't be a Dior show without a stand-out line-up of celebrities and tastemakers of note. Where to even start? There was Rihanna of course, in a black silk taffeta jacket and skirt, paired with a matching hat. She sweetly fangirled over Natalie Portman when arriving at the show, the latter of which looked chic in a Pre Fall 2024 black wool and silk jacket over a vest and shorts. Other celebrities of note: Anya Taylor Joy wore a Dior red lace long dress, So-Hee Han in a Dior Spring-Summer 2024 printed beige coat and Glenn Close wore a Dior white wool and silk suit.
