MAISON DIOR

Maison Dior celebrates a New Era

Italian Creative Director Maria Grazia Chiuri has definitively made Maison Dior her own home. Since July 2016, in the footsteps of French founder Christian Dior, she is celebrating Women and their magnificence femininity in a modern and inclusive way. Grateful to be a part of this epic journey. She is no more only the successor of Gianfranco Ferré, John Galliano or Raf Simons. She has earned the respect of her peers, as a talented, committed, and brave woman in tune with her time. A proud feminist. A mum. An Art lover. She is the first Lady in charge in a legendary Maison created and managed by men since its foundation on 8th October 1946 and owned by the French leading Luxury Group LVMH led by billionaire Bernard Arnault since 2017. Mrs. Chiuri has literally turned Dior into an international lifestyle modern brand. Indeed, she designed for modern women. Especially for the youngest ones that she hopes, could live their life free and bold. Proud to be strong and committed women as she and her daughter Rachele, are.

By Hélène Battaglia

Born on the 21 January 1905 in Granville in the Villa Les Rhumbs- property of the municipality since 1932 after his father Maurice was forced to sold it and which became the Musée Christian Dior in 1997-, Christian Dior spent a happy and pampered childhood surrounded by the perfume of the sea and of thousands of flowers grown in the luxuriant garden of his beloved mother Madeleine. This isolated, preserved, happy, peaceful, and green little paradise on Earth, would be his own ‘Madeleine’ of Proust: he would never forget it and would cherish with nostalgia this memory forever. In addition to his strong love for flowers, which explains his vocation of a couturier-perfumer - his lucky charm and favorite one was the lily of the valley- passed on to him by his mother who had green fingers, from his maternal grandmother he inherited a strange taste, which would influence his whole personal and professional life’s decisions. As her, he indeed used to believe in Art of Divination, fortune tellers, signs of destiny and premonitions. As the age of 14, as he was attending a charity event for soldiers, he met his first clairvoyant who told him that ‘He will be penniless but women will be good to him and it is thanks to them that he will succeed and make large profits and be obliged to make numerous crossings’. Thanks to his faith in magic and in this prediction, he always strongly believed in his lucky star. He didn’t still know what his own path would be, but he already knew that he was born to do something great with his life. Superstitious, he always kept a dried twig of his lucky flower in his blazer’s pocket and slipped a sprig of it into the hem of each model of his first collection. Madame Delahaye, a famous Parisian fortune teller who predicted him the return home safe of his deported sister, became soon his trustful confident, counselor and most faithful supporter. For a living, Christian Dior would certainly have chosen Art on his own, but as a male member of a wealthy bourgeois and conservative French family, he went in Paris to the University and studied Political Science. He made many friends and enjoyed the Parisian night life and started to hang out with young talented artists like Henri Sauguet, Christian Bérard and Jean Cocteau at Le Boeuf sur le Toit. Almost out of the blue, he finally moved his first professional steps into the Art’s field in 1929 thanks to his old friend, Jacques Bonjean who gave him the gold opportunity to become his business partner as director of an Art gallery located at 34 rue de la Boétie. Unfortunately, cause of the worldwide financial crisis of 1929, after a few years, by lack of clients, the gallery had to close its doors in 1932. As the fortune teller predicted him when he was a teenager, he went through bad times, forced to take casual jobs and live in makeshift housing without money and very sick cause of a tuberculosis which forced him to leave Paris for Spain for a while in 1934. Nevertheless, he never gave up because he knew the success was around the corner. He just had to be patient. When he came back to the capital in 1935, once again, he could rely on one of his close friends: Jean Ozenne, who was a requested talented fashion illustrator, hosted him at his place. And at that time, something magic happened. Dior was so fascinated by the artwork of his roommate that unexpectedly, he also started to draw hats, accessories and garments and discovered he also had a real talent for that. His illustrations started to be noticed and he soon was hired by Maison Piguet and then, by the fashion Maison Lucien Lelong. From Art, he slowly but surely entered into the fashion world.

At 41 years old, he was already Someone. Renowned in Paris for his talent. But he was not yet the Christian Dior, he aimed to be. He was still waiting for the predicted international Success and for those Women to change his life forever. Waiting for a sign coming to him. On the 18th April 1946, as he was going up on the Faubourg Saint-Honoré, the day before his meeting with ‘French King of Cotton’ and rich entrepreneur Marcel Boussac, who wants him to accept to become the new Artistic Director of the Maison of Haute Couture Philippe et Gaston, he almost fall down just in front of the British Ambassy. In this moment, with a pinch of nostalgy, he remembered his family’s roots and his peaceful childhood spent in Granville in front of the English Islands. Under his foots, he discovered that the object trampled was a star. Finally. That was it. As written in the stars. He suddenly exactly knew after all these years, which was his destiny. As his dear childhood friend Georges Vigouroux, he met three consecutive times in Paris and the one who knew Boussac, told him to do, he was ready to embrace his future. He accepted Boussac’s business partnership offer with a condition: he would start his own eponymous Maison. Times had indeed come for him to build his own success story and show Paris and the world his talent. Officially born on the 8th October 1946, Maison Christian Dior, located in a Parisian Hôtel particulier at 30 avenue Montaigne, was opened on the 16th December 1946. Together with his team of 90 people, including the young Pierre Cardin, he worked hard on his first collection ever, the Spring/ Summer 1947. Presented to the International press on the 12th February 1947, the latter was like a bomb with disruptive effects. A star was born. Aware of the fact she was attending a true revolution, Carmen Snow, editor in chief of Harper’s Bazaar exclaimed “It is such a ‘New Look’ “. Fashion won’t be never the same. A new era has just started for women. The silhouette in 8 – Dior’s lucky number- was so sensual, innovative and avantgarde. ‘Clean and curved, it emphasized bosom, hollowed waist, accentuated hips’ explained Mr Dior. As predicted, Women fell in love with this new Dior’s Femme Fatale: The Bar suit became a legend and the strong symbol of a post-war restored femininity. Unfortunately, Monsieur Dior was able to enjoy his deserved success for only ten years. He passed away too soon tragically in Tuscany in 1957, depriving the world of his creative genius. But the decade he paid tribute to women, made fashion history. He would stay one of the most iconic fashion designers of all time. In July 2016, at the age of 48, almost the same age, Christian Dior founded his own Maison, Italian Maria Grazia Chiuri became the new Creative Director in house. Succeeding to young Yves Saint-Laurent in 1957, who was Dior’s first assistant since 1953, Marc Bohan in 1960, Gianfranco Ferré in 1989, John Galliano in 1996 and Raf Simons in 2012. She was the best fit for this job. Who better than a woman can design for women? As the founder, Mrs. Chiuri stands resolutely out of the crowd. Born in the Eternal City and daughter of a dressmaker, she early knew that Fashion was her destiny. Graduated from the Roman Istituto Europeo di Design, she has former professional experiences at Italian Maison Fendi and Valentino. She is not only a talented Creative Director, but she is also, first of all, a committed woman and proud feminist who wants to use her privileged social position to show the way.

Especially through her collections as the ones called « We Should All Be Feminists » and “Sisterhood Is Powerful », which were clear messages sent to the young generations. She truly believes in female empowerment. She is a woman on a mission. Convinced that “Haute Couture does not stop at ball dresses”, the new Landlady of Maison Dior is revolutionizing the wardrobe for contemporary women. As Monsieur Dior used to surrounded himself by talented artists, she is constantly surrounded by her own muses: ballerinas, artists, activists, female writers, and proud young women like her beloved daughter Rachele. With a desire of inclusivity, she is creating for them and with them, mixing the unique heritage passed by all the talented men who led the Maison before her, with her strong visionary and innovative female mind. To enhance her collection Ready-to-Wear Autumn-Winter 2022-2023’s show, she recently joined force with Italian Artist Mariella Bettineschi who staged, ‘the Next Era’, the conceptual frame and art installation which is composed of a gallery of paintings composed of largescale portraits of women from the history of painting from the 16th to the 19th century. Thanks to innovative techniques developed in the D-Air lab laboratories, an innovative Italian start-up founded in 2015 by Lino Dainese and Architect Silvia Dainese, she also revisited the legendary Bar Jacket and the iconic Roger Vivier’s pumps. The artistic partnership with French photographer goes on: The latter is the author of the Winter 2022 Digital Campaign. Under the positive influence of Mrs Chiuri, Maison Dior has never been so women-oriented and powerful than today. And Lady Dior has never been so real and in tune with her times. Less Femme Fatale. More Wonder Woman. She is you. She is us. She is all the women. She is each woman. Each one unique.