The Dior cruise show in Rome which was notable for two reasons – the most important is that there are rumours that Maria Grazia Chiuri is leaving Dior after eight years as creative director, and the first woman to hold that position at the fashion house. It’s been musical chairs at the fashion houses for a year and this is the latest and possibly the last major shift. Word is, Maria will be exiting Dior and replaced by Jonathan Anderson who left Loewe (where he had a major impact) and is now officially with Dior for menswear. The speculation is that Jonathan will take over in womenswear when Maria’s departure is confirmed. She will not answer questions about it though, preferring to focus on the collection.
But where the collection was being presented is a clue about her future too, because it was in Rome and not Paris, and she’s from Rome, so people are interpreting this as a full circle closure moment. And also, the collection incorporated a lot of couture which, typically, is reserved for the Paris runway.
The other thing people are talking about is the dress code. Maria asked women to wear white and men to wear black, so it felt like a wedding. And Natalie Portman wore one of the most bridal looks of the night.
The dress is frothy and pretty but for me what makes it is the blazer. Without it the dress wouldn’t stand out to me, but the jacket elevates the outfit, especially the length of it, and how beautifully it’s tailored.
Rosamund Pike was also there, also in white, but less formal, less wedding coded. I’m surprised, though, that we didn’t see other Dior ambassadors there. Like Charlize Theron, Jennifer Lawrence, Jisoo, and Anya Taylor-Joy. If this really is Maria’s final bow with the house, and given their longstanding relationships with it, I would have expected more of them to show.
As for the collection itself – so many red carpet options here. There were a lot of naked dresses, nudes and whites all over the place. Here are my two standouts…
A white layered tuxedo situation with a white cropped jacket over a waistcoat over a slip dress. It’s simple but also unusual and f-cking stunning.
On the more dramatic side, I am obsessed with this champagne metallic ancient military inspired dress. The high collar, I’ll never not love a cap sleeve, and this one is SO special – note that it’s a cap sleeve made out of strips which corresponds to the ones that make up the skirt…please, someone, call dibs on it for an award show, we need to see her again.
