For most Parisians, when we received the invitation, two miniature green metal chairs, we immediately knew what those little chairs meant : they are at the center of every ‘jardin’ in Paris : Jardin des Tuileries, Jardin du Luxembourg, Parc Monceau (…). You sit in the sun, you stop, you breathe, you gossip, you read, you look around, you wonder, you ponder. But, imagine what that was like during the promenade seasons under Louis XIV?
The wonderful thing about Dior, but most particularly Jonathan Anderson, is that the pieces that come out on the runway work for so many different personas and life situations that you can really pick and mix where you want to bring it. That’s one of the particularities of this show ; other shows have one set trend, one big inspiration, one clear red line, whereas at Dior, the promenade might be a theme, but it goes from the first looks that have the exaggerated tutu with a train, the cropped bar jackets and crisp white shirts to embroidered white denims paired with suede boots to waterlily white floating dresses and silk heels. You never quite know where Dior will bring you when the first silhouette comes out, and that’s a good thing.
The craftsmanship on the pieces was evident - there is a special mention for the little buttons on the side of satin trousers, the black tie jacket with fringes and silk collar paired with jeans and the velvet frog bag - in a weird way, half of the show was a reminder and a continuity of the latest Couture show, and half of it was complete newness to the eye, yet, somehow, it all felt ‘very Dior’, whatever that sentence means. Actually, what does it mean? Weirdly enough, and subtly, Jonathan Anderson has changed Dior’s perception in just under a year - we now like bows, we probably all think ladybirds are cute (are they not always?), wish we could discover The Very Hungry Caterpillar for the first time (again) or carry it on our arms and I have to say, I think the ambassadors they have are fun, young, cool and genuinely have something to say and a vibe.
I could end this review by doing a fun little wording on the sun shining for Dior (the venue was hot, yes), but that kind of defeats the purpose of what I’m trying to express, which is that Dior is going places, it’s becoming investment pieces to cherish, and that’s kind of what you want nowadays.
