Two days after the extraordinarily successful Women’s March worldwide, Maria Grazia Chiuri launched her first couture collection for Dior in Paris. It is necessary to say that following after Raf Simons is a feat, but with Chiuri being the first female creative director of the fashion house, the feat becomes even greater. The show was an illustrious display of the strengths of femininity. The gowns were delicate and intricate, sheer and whimsical, in a way that captured the subtly of womanhood. On the other end of the collection, the Bar jackets that were shown were tough and bold, sharp and elegant ready for a woman who is unstoppable. The pieces were an incredible adaptation of the typical look that Dior is known for. Chiuri was able to bring her own feminine, whimsical twist to the styles that defined the New Look in the late 1920s. Where Simons brought modernity to Dior, Chiuri brings multifaceted femininity to the house. The collection was shown in the Musée Rodin; the runway was a fantastical garden masterpiece. The show started with masked women, dressed in black from head to toe, to include the masks worn on their faces. The transition from the seriousness of the monochromatic, black looks into the pastel, whimsical gowns was seamless. All of the women in their looks were at home in that garden. The dichotomy of the collection did not go unnoticed, and was maybe even highlighted following the call to arms that was the Women’s March. The collection was able to showcase all the intricacies of womanhood. The shape of the suits were structured, enhancing the beauty of a woman’s body. Where the sheer, delicate pieces showcase the beauty and magic that is inherent to femininity. Chiuri was able to capture all of the little nuances that might seem irrelevant, but told a story about living life as a modern woman.
Chiuri, as the first women to become the creative director for Women’s Dior, showcased what women look like when dressed by women. The ability for a woman to be able to take charge of one of the largest and oldest fashion houses in Paris, and create such an exquisite shift in the brand is incredible. The Women’s March exemplifies the strength that can be shown by women, and how important female empowerment is. Chiuri’s first couture show coincides perfectly with the March, especially knowing that in her first collection for the house she showed t-shirts that read, “We Should All be Feminists,” quoting Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Her collections are for the modern, empowered woman. To take a brand that is so well-known for their femininity and embrace the several dimensions of what it means to be a woman in the modern world, is bold. She has taken her stand as an empowered, informed woman and will be dressing women with this spirit as well. From what was shown in her first couture show, it is only proof that there is so much more to come from Maria Grazia Chiuri and her vision for Dior.
