Dior SS24 – Paris Fashion Week
The French Maison had Paris spellbound during their SS24 collection. By Magdalen Manning
Opening Paris Fashion Week, the spectacular Dior SS24 collection delved into the ever-changing debate over feminism and femininity. As the first female creative director in the Maison’s long history, Maria Grazia Chiuri examined each side of the coin in a 78-look story, while blending ideas of how the past and future can coexist simultaneously.
The designer’s inspirations ran far and wide; from witches, the “custodians of the knowledge of the mother-goddess,” to the works of Italian artists Alberto Burri and Elena Bellantoni. Classic Bar shapes and loose lines were juxtaposed next to distressed knits, frayed panels of trailing chiffon, and single-shoulder work shirt dresses casually tied at the waist to give form to the theme’s dichotomy. It went from sheer lace with lingerie overtones to oversized distressed denims with discoloured edging, with a little of everything in-between.
Workwear-inspired frames were also seen in the apron dresses and padded overcoats to contrast with the dainty spaghetti-strap, midriff-revealing bodysuits and the flowing split-skirts adorned in dramatic monochrome prints. “She is interested in all the rebels who have asserted their independence in the face of a masculine world and challenged its system,” say the show notes of Chiuri’s muse. It’s clear: Dior’s new woman must have it all.
Shades of ash, chamomile and opaque black brought to mind the eerie bewitching hour, but the backdrop was a pink and yellow technicolour marvel with crackling video screens featuring Bellantoni’s graphic collages. Maternal fabrics reflected temporal memories and rips, tears and lacerations reinforced Chiuri’s desire to empower women to break free of societal norms and realise their worth in self-expression.
Conceptualising the idea of identity through art and fashion, Dior SS24 was delivered as a statement; a collaboration of politicism and rebellion through cut and design. Chuiri reworked the perceived notions and stereotypical narratives of womanhood for a new era and embraced the space for activism it afforded her.
To read our review of the Dior AW23 show from PFW, click here
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