Dior Fall/Winter 2024 Couture - Review

On a backdrop of illustrations depicting female athletes, we were prepared for an Olympics inspired collection from Maria Grazia Chiuri on the eve of the Olympics being held in Paris. The first white draped gown stepped onto the runway and the realisation dawned that this was another Chiuri collection inspired by the peplos. The peplos is a draped garment from Ancient Greece that you often see on Grecian and roman statues depicting the gods, goddesses and warriors of Ancient Greece. This is something that Chiuri has done at Dior countless times even just within the last four years. Two shows that come to mind are the Cruise 2022 collection and Spring 2020 Haute Couture collection. The continuous obsession with the peplos, while commendable from an art history standpoint, is getting quite repetitive for the brand. 

Chiuri described her desire for the collection to embody “Wellness, comfort, and beauty—I think these three elements are very important in our work. But sometimes fashion is more obsessed with the silhouette or the construction than the material. I want to do clothes where the body stays well, and can move freely.”, framing a want to bring the peplos into the couture space to free the bodies of women, no longer constricted by garments such as the corset. Which, in an industry that has just celebrated the work of John Galliano at Mugler for a collection based around corsetry, seems out-of-touch and, frankly, boring for the brand. 

This freedom of body and celebration of activewear for women is cited as the reason for her choice to incorporate the silhouette of the racer back tank top. Bringing in elements of the 1928 Olympics where women could compete in track and field events for the first time and the invention of jersey materials. Chiuri made the pieces using jersey materials, draping it into evening garments while keeping with the ideas of movement in activewear and the freedom of said movement. Chiuri is attempting to meld these modern ideas of women in sport and activewear with the Grecian shapes in a rather clunky, obvious way. There is no nuance nor undertone to the pieces in this collection, everything is written right into the seams of it. Think, words of affirmation printed on your window kind of obvious. 

At points Chiuri experimented with the tank and high waisted tailored trouser suits to bring a sort of formal edge to the shape and at other times incorporated the metallic tanks into the draped white gowns topped off with skinny leather belts and strappy sandals. While I appreciate the attempt at referencing and the archival materials Chiuri pulled from for this collection, I thought the pieces themselves were lacklustre for a haute couture collection. They are marketable and I’m sure the high paying clientele of Dior enjoy the peplos references (or why would they continue to repeat this motif over and over) with simple colourways and flowing silhouettes, but for a show where we expect high impact, this fell flat for me. With a recycled empowerment message, and recycled reference material, it was not the Dior show I had hoped for. 

That being said, I did like some of the pieces in the collection. The comfortability and simplicity of the pieces showcased some of the dressmaking capabilities of the team at Dior. The draped tops, particularly the metallic fringe variant, and pleated dresses were highlights of the collection. The more standout pieces were the more simple gowns that focused on dressmaking techniques such as this black silk and velvet gown and this green and gold gown. They highlight the high-end fabrics that Chiuri chose for the collection while remaining true to the source material. You can see the Grecian and freedom of movement notes while still feeling that you are looking at high value evening gowns. I wish we had seen more of this in the collection rather than the same silhouettes repeated in different colourways over tank tops.

To watch the show for yourself, follow the link to the YouTube video: Dior Haute Couture Show. What were your thoughts on the Christian Dior Fall/Winter 2024-25 Haute Couture Collection? Let’s have a discussion in the comments below!

Images and quotes found at: https://www.vogue.com/fashion-shows/fall-2024-couture/christian-dior#review [Accessed 25th June 2024)

Goddess meets Athlete

A demonstration of how Chiuri blended modern and ancient elements into the pieces.

Simplicity Wins

Highlights of the collection were the parred down garments that show off the quality of the materials.

Stand Out in Green

Who could miss this flowing number that came down the runway in multiple colours.