With cryptic music and embroidered fabric on the walls, the Haute couture runway of Christian Dior feels like an ode to the folkloric regal chic.
In a runway decorated with beautifully embroidered flower patterns on the walls (all fruit of Ukrainian artist Olesia Trofymenko), Christian Dior opens up their Haute Couture runway to the tune of music that feels equally worthy of a Versailles ball and some alt-electronic rave. An ode to Folklore, this collection by Maria Grazia Chiuri is all about tradition, rich fabrics, and joy.
The first set of outfits to walk the runway are coloured in nudes, creams and whites, with puffy sleeves, flowing skirts and square collar dresses with intricate embellishments that focus on fabric, craft and sowing technique. Dresses with shirt collars, embroidered bolero jackets, and lace fabrics are among some of the most interesting outfits on the runway.
The first glimpse of colour is an off-green, which comes in the shape of a long dress. Soon followed by a tartan tank-top dress with a turtle-neck collar.
The beiges keep seeping into the runway, this time embellished with red, often in tartan form. Laces are a big part of the show, found in the hems of skirts, or making up the entirety of the dresses themselves.
There’s no trousers at the Christian Dior show. Every model is either sporting skirts or long dresses, always flowing classically and modestly to the sound of music that feels like modern remixes of an angel choir.
It’s sometimes screaming Downton Abbey, other times modest Bridgerton elegance, but either way, it is always classical and archetypal, not quite challenging the norm or breaking the mould.
The dresses keep coming, this time with plaid or baroque-looking patterns. Black comes in too, in the form of a modest dress and yet another bolero-like jacket, whilst lace continues to decorate the designs, often adopted as undergarments to cover up the cleavage.
More modern style cuts begin to appear, jackets with slightly oversize fits occasionally steering the focus away from the dresses. The music, at this point, no longer feels so classical but instead sounds more electronic, building up to a crescendo.
As it quietens down, we’re back to the start. Beiges, lace, embroidery… but this time there’s more transparencies. The looks no longer feel so demure, instead braver in their shaping and tailoring.
The runway closes with a model in red. Her walk is powerful and determined, complimenting her bold haircut and bright red dress, which happens to be of a very similar cut to the initial white dress which opened the runway.