Dior’s atelier of the future

The metallic floor has a surprise. Models emerge from mechanical trapdoors as lifts to reach the catwalk. A mechanical garden tells the vision of a futuristic atelier imagined by Kim Jones for the Dior man for celebrating his five years at the maison of Bernard Arnault’s group.

«Dior is a house of haute couture, everything has to do with clothes», Kim Jones himself explained. «At Dior’s core, there is the silhouette, the form, the technique, and the high level of realization. I like to think that in my five years here, I have never forgotten that. It is a culture we have learnt from the past of womenswear and applied to the present of menswear. For the first time in our collections, there is a collage of influences from different predecessors from Dior and eras we wanted to make a tribute at once. Influence come from the continuum of all the Dior designers and say something about me as well».

Dior pop icons, references to Yves Saint Laurent silhouettes and Gianfranco Ferré embroideries, Monsieur Dior cabochons and Marc Bohan fabrics took the stage with that link between tailoring and the street, a trademark seal for Kim Jones, ready to host friends such as Demi Moore, Maluma, Noomi Rapace at the show. Pharrell Williams could not miss the show as well with Stefano Pilati next to him, namely the milanese designer who walked the runway on the Pont Neuf just the other night for the chameleon artist’s debut in men’s and now back to super buzz himself. 

However, the spotlight is now on these reworkings between dna and present vision formed by Kim Jones who chooses a not too formal, softened in the lines, contaminated with shorts, all declined on a tweed with bright and metallic reflections. Masculine and feminine are contaminated, traditional British fabrics are mixed with haute couture suit materials. Shoes cite the Lady Dior bags of 1995. The figure is drawn by coats with rounded shapes that give way to forays with strong colors into the male wardrobe with tops and polo shirts that ignite in hues of fluorescent intensity, right down to the jewelry used to embroider shirts and light jackets.

Judgment. In a season in which the challenge between the big brands is getting tougher and tougher with mega-budget events, Kim Jones manages to have his say with a collection that moves well between concreteness and preciousness. The mise en scène was beautiful and the designer’s magnetic ability to create his vip community is strong. (All rights reserved)