Dior Pays Homage To The 1950s with Fall Winter 2023 Collection

“Today’s show explores the decade of the 1950s through the women who inspired Christian Dior with their freedom and strength,” wrote Maria Grazia Chiuri, Creative Director of Dior, ahead of the brand’s Fall Winter 2023 fashion show. The collection, presented at Jardin de Tuileries in Paris, was a continuation of Chiuri’s ongoing homage to female figures. In sync with this celebration, gracing the front row were iconic Dior women such as Charlize Theron — face of the brand’s J’adore Parfum — and Dior’s Global Ambassador, Jisoo. 

Reinterpreting the 1950s

During her tenure as Dior’s Creative Director, Maria Grazia Chiuri has never missed out on the opportunity to honor and collaborate with remarkable women across industries. Chiuri’s latest collection as the head of the French luxury brand was not any different. For the FW23 season, the Italian creative reinterpreted the 1950s, taking as inspiration representatives of French style, music, and culture, such as Édith Piaf and Juliette Gréco. Additionally, Chiuri also found musing in Catherine Dior, Christian Dior’s younger sister, who was a member of the French Resistance and later in her life became one of the few women designated as a mandataire en fleurs coupées by the French government — a title that granted her the right to trade flowers from France. “These three women shared an independent spirit that guided their choices. Singular protagonists, each of them was able, through their lifestyle, to subvert feminine stereotypes that were part of the post-war mind set,” Dior wrote in the show notes. 

Photos courtesy of Dior

For the collaborative element, Chuiri invited the Portuguese artist Joana Vasconcelos to create an installation for the runway. Titled “VALKYRIE MISS DIOR,” the 24-meter sculpture featured 20 different textiles from the FW23 collection and was described as a “dialogue between human bodies, the inhabited clothing, and the present space.” With the monumental masterpiece as the backdrop, models strutted down the catwalk dressed in modern iterations of the Dior classics — not without an MGC twist of course. Revisiting Christian Dior’s floral motifs, the designer sent down the runway skirts and dresses in mottled fabric, interwoven with a metallic thread. There were also motifs such as tartan fabric, leopard print, and floral patterns featured on pieces like coats, mid-length skirts, and matching sets. For the finale, Edith Piaf’s classic, “Non, je ne regrette rien” endowed a theatrical component to a collection that was sober and rebellious in equal parts.   

Dior Women On The Front Row

Just like every season, the unveiling of Dior’s most recent collection gathered the elite of the entertainment and fashion worlds. The Hollywood icon Charlize Theron, the British actress Maisie Williams and the model Elsa Hosk, among many other big names, sat front row. However, the indisputable star of the show was Dior’s multitalented Global Ambassador, Jisoo. Fresh off the unveiling of her Vogue France cover — a first for a K-pop star — the singer set Jardin de Tuileries on fire at her arrival. Jisoo, who recently announced her upcoming solo debut as a singer, wore an amethyst strapless dress that nodded to Christian Dior’s legendary “New Look.” To complement the outfit, Jisoo carried the brand’s signature Lady Dior bag and matching black sandals. Unlike her most recent appearance at the Dior couture show, Jisoo traded natural makeup for a more intense beauty look that highlighted her eyes. To finish off the look, the K-pop superstar let her hair fall in soft waves and sported a trendy black manicure.

As a regular at every Dior event, Jisoo brought a pop of color to a guestlist that mainly opted for muted colors such as black, gray, camel, and white. Other show attendants included Olivia Palermo, Deva Cassel, Kimberley Anne Woltemas, Lucie Zhang, Heart Evangelista, Lenna Mahfouf, and Loaune. 

The Empowerment Saga

Since taking the helm of Dior in 2016, Maria Gracia Chiuri has built her collections around topics where women are the main protagonists. Every season, the designer pays tribute to past and present-time female icons — whether it is in literal form or through meaningful collaborations. In her latest effort for Dior, Chiuri honors women who thrived in post-war France, breaking stereotypes and embracing hope for the future. Chiuri, in particular, referenced the “New Look” but not without providing a meaningful explanation. “[Christian Dior] made that silhouette when women in France were very skinny, because of the war. He wanted to give women a body that gave them optimism for the future. His sister Catherine had come back from a concentration camp, so to give her this big dress, where she can look in the mirror and see this new body, was to give her hope,” she told The Guardian prior to the FW23 show.  

Interested in the latest runways? Find out how Dilara Findikoglu wowed the crowds of London Fashion Week with her Fall Winter 2023 collection, here.