The labyrinth; irregular, almost impenetrable, like a secret garden. This is the image that inspired Maria Grazia Chiuri, Artistic Director of the women’s collections for the house of Dior, for her first Haute Couture season.
Fascinated by the myriad of interpretations to which this archetypal form has given rise over the ages, she perceived her adventure into the heart of the Dior world as being akin to entering a labyrinth, the way sprinkled with the flowers, plants and allegorical images that form part of the iconography of these places but which, at the same time. The result is evening dresses in changeant and powdery colors which evoke the passing of the seasons and of life itself.
Claude Lalanne, for his part, imagined that the flowers, brambles, and butterflies of costume jewelry landed on bodies ready to spring to life. Stephen Jones’s hats and masks bring an aspect of gothic phantasmagoric with a punk edge.
Maria Grazia Chiuri embraces the art of divination, transforming it to embellish her creations: embroidered stars stand out against gold-colored tulle, tarot symbols are hand-painted on the white panels of long dresses. This voyage is guided by a desire for beauty, where losing oneself is a necessary step to challenging oneself and evolving. Liberating and unforgettable.
