Dior Returns To Runways With A Message To Small Artists Woven Into Pieces
Image via Dior
“The materiality of fabric becomes form, while the subversive language of embroidery is expressed in a project that becomes a performance. An energy resembling poetic pleasure, at the intersection of style, movement and attitude,” writes Dior. It speaks about its freshly-revealed autumn-winter 2021-2022 haute couture collection, designed by widely-celebrated Maria Grazia Chiuri.
Fashion has seen more than a year of online-only offerings and an over-saturation of fashion film as a result of widespread global cancellations of physical shows. A focus on the tactility of material and fashion’s craftsmanship is outstanding throughout this Paris Fashion Week, where in-person shows have slowly began to make a comeback.
Through precise paneling at the waist, woolen fabrics flare out into full skirts and rippling peplums in these explorations of controlled volumes for #DiorCouture Autumn-Winter 2021-2022 https://t.co/lLmEOfEhKB by Maria Grazia Chiuri. pic.twitter.com/dzpC9iEMfw
— Dior (@Dior) July 6, 2021
Chiuri recognizes that “the pandemic has been very difficult for many people,” referencing especially the Indian embroidery industry, which has struggled immensely during the last year as its work is largely connected to events.
With in-person events being almost nonexistent throughout international lockdowns, little to no business has taken place.
She cites Clare Hunter’s work Threads of Life: a History of the World through the Eye of the Needle as an inspiration for this collection. “We have to impact less for the future, but we also have to understand which parts of the supply chain we have to support in order for these people to survive. We have to think of social impact,” Chiuri tells Vogue magazine.
Two looks dissect the architecture of tailoring through sinuous paneling and textile transformation in the newly unveiled #DiorCouture Autumn-Winter 2021-2022 https://t.co/lLmEOfEhKB collection by Maria Grazia Chiuri. pic.twitter.com/Et3Rk6UrOe
— Dior (@Dior) July 6, 2021
The backdrop of the show also reflected this: the wall of the structure in the garden of the Musée Rodin, the show’s venue, was covered by landscapes designed by commissioned artist Eva Jospin. In just three months, they were hand-embroidered by the Chanakya School of Craft in Mumbai, which aims to support female artisans while preserving traditional craftsmanship.
The show set for #DiorCouture Autumn-Winter 2021-2022 https://t.co/lLmEOfEhKB by Maria Grazia Chiuri included the work 'Chambre de Soie' by artist Eva Jospin entirely embroidered thanks to the skills of the Chanakya School of Craft, Mumbai.
— Dior (@Dior) July 5, 2021
© Adrien Dirand pic.twitter.com/7nuwmKOTRs
“Isn’t that the role of the avant-garde?” Dior asks its readers. “To make visible what one does not see. To define, through artistic practice, the longings of a world in the midst of profound transformation.”
[via The Guardian, images via Dior]
