Maria Grazia Chiuri Reinterprets The 1950s for Dior Autumn/Winter 2023

Dior opened the Paris Fashion Week to reflect what clothing really means to the body and fashion, narrated by Maria Grazia Chiuri as she revisited the fifties era in an ode to Maison’s favourite icons. 

As always, since Maria Grazia Chiuri took over the design direction in 2016, she has fancied all the feminine cuts, flairs, and inspirations to be the main attractions of Dior. The latest Autumn/Winter 2023 collection is no exception. Along with those touches, Maria Grazia Chiuri also looked back to the 1950s and explored the idea of fashion through the influence of Catherine Dior, Edith Piaf, and Juliette Gréco. These three women shared an independent spirit that guided their choices to subvert feminine stereotypes that were part of the post-war mindset, making this collection a juxtaposition of femininity and a rebellious attitude. 

The exploration then translated into the appearance of A-line skirts, off-the-shoulder necklines in some dresses and tops, and floral motifs, revisiting Catherine Dior’s undying love for flowers that she grew and sold as a message of hope. Maria Grazia Chiuri has also breathed life into the mottled and poplin fabrics by interweaving them with a metallic thread, losing the contours of the materials in the process to obtain an abstract effect and create a perfect canvas for the metal elements attached to it.

The influence of the 1950s also played its part in the accessories line with cloche hats and Dior’s signature berets, worn with the famous Bar jacket. Exotic colours like ruby, emerald, topaz yellow, and blue took centre stage and were applied together with tartans for coats, jackets, and skirts. 

It’s not a Dior show without such a spectacular setup. For this presentation, Maria Grazia Chiuri personally asked the Portuguese artist Joana Vasconcelos to occupy the venue with one of her monumental installations and named it Valkyrie Miss Dior. It’s a proliferation of organic forms that interact with the architecture where she explored the idea by sewing, knitting, and crocheting the realm to match Dior’s savoir-faire. The combination made the presentation an excellent opener for the Paris Fashion Week.