61 posts tagged "Christian Dior"
Three’s A Trend: Racy Lace
Judging by the wares spotted on recent red carpets, like the sheer-paneled Antonio Berardi gown Gwyneth Paltrow donned to the Iron Man 3 premiere and the posterior-flashing Givenchy frock Ke$ha sported at last night’s Billboard awards, it would seem there’s a risqué trend afoot. And it’s spilling over onto the Resort ’14 runways, but with a ladylike twist. Chanel, J.W. Anderson’s Versus Versace, and Christian Dior each offered examples of flowery, diaphanous lace. Karl Lagerfeld opted for subtle applications, namely with a bra-revealing blouse shown under a matching blazer, while Raf Simons went full monty-ette, splitting one dress with a mint-colored, neck-to-knee filigree. Anderson offset the neon pink of a slash-away skirt with a hip-high black-lace inset. Needless to say, it left little to the imagination—save what one would possibly wear underneath.
The Many Impressions of Christian Dior
This Saturday marks the opening of the Impressionist Festival in Normandy, France, and Granville’s Christian Dior Museum is getting in on the action. On May 4, the museum will bow Impressions Dior—an exhibit that pays homage to the nineteenth-century art movement’s role in shaping the fashion house. The show juxtaposes artworks on loan from private collectors and the Musée d’Orsay—Edgar Degas’ Le Bal, Claude Monet’s Paysage de Normandie, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s Roses Mousseuses (below) among them—with seventy-four Impressionist-influenced dresses. “Impressionist fashions fueled Dior’s nostalgic daydreams, spurring him to reinvent various pieces from bygone eras,” curator Florence Müller told Style.com. “The Musée d’Orsay’s Degas painting, Le Bal, evokes this lively and refined past, whose charms left a powerful impression on Christian Dior.” However, it wasn’t just the house’s founder who was inspired by the art movement—more contemporary creative directors have nodded to the Impressionists, too. John Galliano’s yellow tulle Margot dress from Dior’s 2005 Haute Couture collection is on display. Named for ballerina Margot Fonteyn de Arias, its multicolored wool and raffia embroidery boasts a pastoral, painterly quality. Also on view is an embroidered, multicolored tulle-and-silk bustier evening dress from Raf Simons’ Spring 2013 Haute Couture collection.
Positioned next to Renoir’s Marine Guernsey painting will be a fluid dress once worn by Princess Grace of Monaco. “The material of these dresses is often very light and airy, like sheer fabric or organza,” said Müller.” The feeling of fluidity dominates these outfits. They begin to vibrate with nature’s ebb and flow, and the movement of its elements—sea, sky, clouds, or wind—all of which were masterfully interpreted by the Impressionists.”
Impressions Dior will run from May 4 to September 22 at the Musée Christian Dior Granville.
Designers Take a Chance on Pants for Evening
With gala season kicking off in earnest this week, we’ve been contemplating alternatives to predictable strapless cocktail frocks and princess gowns. Don’t get us wrong: We’ve got nothing against a nice dress, but the elegantly tailored evening trousers we saw in the Fall collections look so much more modern. Alexander Wang featured sharp slacks on his New York runway and at his Balenciaga debut, and we noticed similar styles at Narciso Rodriguez and The Row. Draped camisole and bustier tops accompanied by long trains that float behind slim pants have been in the air since Haider Ackermann’s Spring ’11 show. Raf Simons nailed that look at his first Haute Couture presentation for Christian Dior last July, and we’ve witnessed its popularity rise with designers like Jason Wu, Mary Katrantzou, Juan Carlos Obando, and Vera Wang in the months since.
CLICK FOR A SLIDESHOW of our favorite evening pants.
Ocean’s Rising
Frank Ocean is everywhere in fashion. There he is front row at Dior. There he was front row at Margiela. And look: Here he is in Band of Outsiders’ new Polaroid campaign.
Willy Maywald’s Topped Shots
Perhaps best known for serving as Christian Dior’s house photographer, the late Willy Maywald documented French couture and culture with unfussy black-and-white photographs from the 1930s through the 1980s. He had a particular affinity for capturing hats, and WWD reports that on April 6, the Atelier-Musée du Chapeau (a felt-hat plant turned museum in France’s Chazelles-sur-Lyon) will celebrate his talent with Willy Maywald, Hommage aux Chapeaux 1936-1968. The show will feature Maywald photographs of toppers by the likes of Madame Paulette, Jacques Heim, Jacques Fath, and, of course, Christian Dior.
Willy Maywald, Hommage aux Chapeaux 1936-1968, will be on view from April 6 through September 15 at the Atelier-Musée du Chapeau.