Chapter 2: Christian Dior Couturier du rêve
“In order to be a critic of fashion, one must first be informed about fashion, in all its complexity: aesthetic, social, cultural, economic and historical.” — Peter McNeil and Sanda Miller, Fashion Writing and Criticism: History, Theory, Practice
One of the key museum-based fashion events of recent years was Christian Dior Couturier du rêve (Designer of Dreams) at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in 2017. The exhibition displayed art and decorative objects throughout in an effort to contextualise the life and influences of Christian Dior who had a strong interest in visual culture.[1] The exhibition successfully presented Dior’s own vision of his designs, in that it showed structured designs grounded in historical and cultural tradition. It also included designs by successive creative directors of the house, in an effort to demonstrate the continuity and furthering of Dior’s vision. The audience was able to step away from the exhibition with a new appreciation of the history of the brand because they were introduced to not only the designs of Dior but his impressive knowledge of art and culture which influenced him. The new appreciation was fostered through the layout of the exhibition by centering it around the “New Look” and introducing the audience to Dior’s cultural foundations before it moved onto its designs today. This chapter will question whether artworks placed next to and amongst designs enhance the visual experience of dress. Does this placement help the audience to gain a better understanding of Haute couture? It will be explored by looking at how the wider visual culture that influences designers is an important part of the design process and that by placing works of art next to haute couture viewers are presented with an expanded perspective. The ever-changing role of haute couture within the museum space could be due to the fact that its role as ‘art’ is not easy to define.[2] Fashion and dress can be re-contextualised according to the space it is being placed in, which means that categorising them can be difficult.[3] Does placing ‘decorative’ and ‘fine art objects’ (as they have traditionally been defined) amongst haute couture designs aim to better locate the practice of haute couture within the high cultural sphere of the fine arts?
The exhibition included art that was appropriated onto haute couture designs which gave the exhibition viewer a rare opportunity to view both the garment and the artwork that inspired it. Dior was an art dealer before he became a prominent designer, revolutionising fashion in the twentieth century when he launched his house and the “New Look” in 1947. Dior’s auto-biography survives to the present. It provides an insight into Dior’s process of design, his life before fashion and his sources for inspiration, all of which are profoundly influenced by various forms of ‘art’. Dior, then, is an exemplary figure through which to explore a complicated relationship between art and fashion and how they interact with one another. The curators of the Dior exhibition believe that “Fashion became a de facto part of art history when it entered the museum.” [4] However, this does not mean that it becomes easy to define. Although most fashion exhibitions are beginning to display fashion thematically rather than chronologically, the Dior exhibition utilises both display strategies.[5] The display of fashion and art together, with the specific example of Christian Dior Couturier du rêve, contextualises the placement of haute couture in a museum setting to allow the audience to better understand the garment (beyond its aesthetic qualities) and legitimise it’s place amongst high culture which was well understood by its founder Dior.[6]
Christian Dior Couturier du rêve opened on the 5th of July, 2017. It was the first retrospective of Dior in over thirty years, and the most comprehensive to date, as the previous exhibition only documented the first ten years of the house. Curated by Olivier Gabet (director of Musée des Arts Décoratifs) and Florence Müller (Avenir Foundation Curator of Textile Art and Fashion, Denver Art Museum) the exhibition featured over three-hundred dresses including historical documents, decorative objects and works of art. As the curators explain, the exhibition was meant to be an “interplay of Baudelairean connection between fashion and art” [7] In other words, art and fashion are inseparable.[8] Both curators believe that this exhibition should be considered as important as any other traditional retrospective of an artist held at institutions.[9] For Gabet and Müller an influential designer and renowned fashion house like Dior should be celebrated as an important figure who revolutionised the fashion industry.[10] When interviewed by fashion journalist Delphine Roche, Gabet acknowledged “that a couturier as influential as Christian Dior should be celebrated just as regularly through a retrospective in a Parisian institution.”[11]
It is important too, as Gabet mentioned, that the retrospective of a French designer be conducted at an established French institution. Paris was selected as the first stop of the travelling exhibition. This is significant because it was where Dior began his house, and a place which was known for the revitalisation of the fashion industry after World War II.[12] Paris is still home to Dior and The Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode. The exhibition in Paris was attended by around 3500 visitors a day and had 702,000 visitors overall and is a prime example of the growing popularity of fashion exhibitions. This is because of their ability to identify with a general audience. [13] The curators explain that this unique visual experience that transported the viewer into the world of Dior was to demonstrate “a clear and intelligible view to the public of the close dialogue that the house of Christian Dior maintained from the start with art and history, objects and literature.” [14] By placing them in this immersive context the audience was able to experience the historical and social context of Christian Dior and the house.
To provide a complete understanding of the historical and social context behind the garments the curators placed non-fashion objects and artworks amongst couture pieces. The curators suggest this was to “contextualise” allowing the audience to understand Dior’s fashion pieces completely, from an aesthetic, social and cultural view.[15] Weaving traditional paintings and decorative furniture throughout the space draws the audience’s attention to the connection between different design practices that defined an epoch as well as the heritage of the brand. [16] It is important for the audience to create these connections because it adds a deeper layer of meaning to the exhibited garments. It means the garment pushes past being viewed as simply an aesthetic object and instead the audience are opened up to the creative design process of the designer. They see the creative thought process and thus the transformation from one form of culture to another. This is significant because Christian Dior had a strong interest in culture, and specifically fine art.[17] Notably, Dior began his career as an art dealer which meant that he spent time around many artists such as Salvador Dalí.[18] It was not until he was forced to close his gallery that he took up fashion design, spending time drawing for many houses before he opened his own house. By beginning his career in art, Dior was well versed in visual culture because he was surrounded by so many differing artists and art practices. Along with his collecting, the acute understanding of visual culture that he acquired meant that he completely understood the art system. Gabet suggests that the established place of Christian Dior in the world of art history and museums is “self-evident” because of Dior’s frequent visits to museums.[19] Dior must have understood that to wholly appreciate a work of art one must understand elements of the work such as the social context in which it was made.
The Christian Dior Couturier du rêve exhibition is not the first time Dior’s designs have been on display with art. In 1955, Dior was asked to lend items to the Musée des Arts Decoratifs for an exhibition on eighteenth-century cabinet makers from his personal collection, as he was particularly interested in the Belle Époque period.[20] In the same exhibition, he was then asked to bring the display to life by presenting a couture collection on live models to became a part of this exhibition.[21] Christian Dior thus has a special relationship and history with the Musée des Arts Décoratifs because it is not the first time, he has presented a collection of garments at the museum. The display of art and fashion amongst one another in the Christian Dior Couturier du rêve could be an acknowledging of this previous exhibition in 1955. Dior even states in his own biography that exhibitions and museums are “important sources of inspiration, chiefly with regard to details.”[22] Dior acknowledges that museums are important spaces in order to gain a more detailed knowledge of an object, or in this case, a garment.
In furthering an understanding of the importance of the simultaneous exhibition of art and fashion, studying the exhibition’s layout is crucial. The exhibition was split into two settings. The first half is hung chronologically to display the beginning of House of Dior.[23] A successful strategy, the chronological display provides a biographical account of Monsieur Dior and the influences that inspired his works and the designers to follow.[24] The curators worked closely with Natalie Crinière to design the exhibition and create successive settings that suggest an art gallery, an atelier, a street, a boudoir, and a garden which highlight the influences for Dior.[25] While it is chronological, it was also broken down thematically, so that the visitor not only has access to the history of the house but is also able to clearly see the significant influences on Christian Dior.
For example, a Dali artwork is placed in the opening half of the exhibition to demonstrate the artists Dior once represented as a part of his gallery.[26] Once the audience has been given this foundational knowledge, they will then be able to better understand the garments in the second half of the exhibition because they will have the background knowledge of certain silhouettes or fabrics which have been used purposefully. For example, a structured jacket reminiscent of one of the most iconic styles the “New Look,”[27] designed by Raf Simons, may not be completely understood by an audience if they have not seen the earlier designs of Dior or understand the significance of this reference in relation to the heritage of the house.
The second half of the exhibition was organised thematically, exploring the creative directors and the influences which are ever present in Dior’s designs.[28] Both sides of the exhibition are proudly flanked by La Ligne Corolle or the “New Look” (as coined by Harper’s Bazaar editor Carmel Snow) designed by Christian Dior in 1947.[29] Not only is this the first garment which you see as you enter the exhibition but the audience passes by it again to continue into the second half. It acknowledges that the audience have now seen the cultural significance behind this design and that they will continue to see how this is interpreted by the differing creative directors in the subsequent sections – an influence which continues to be ever-present in the minds of the future designers of Dior.[30] Placed in an encompassing circle on the walls surrounding the Bar suit are inspirations that other designers have taken from this iconic garment.
It is significant the exhibition focuses on “New Look” designs. The “New Look” is a highly significant fashion moment, underlined by the curatorial decision to place it in the centre of the exhibition so visitors can reference it once they have seen the early and later designs of Dior. The outfit comprises of a pleated coralla skirt and Shantung jacket and is highly structured as it uses an exuberant amount of fabric to alter the feminine silhouette.[31] This deliberate alteration of the silhouette intentionally moved away from the boxy shapes that defined World War II.[32] The luxurious garment was discussed considerably due to the amount of fabric it used as it is equivalent to fifteen meters of woollen fabric for a day dress.[33] It was launched at time when society was recovering from the war and rationing was still present.[34] As Dior puts it “Europe was tired of dropping bombs and now only wanted to let off fireworks.”[35] Dior, who had a profound understanding of society at the time consciously designed a silhouette which looked towards the future and strongly rejected the past. He understood that society was yearning for a time that moved away from hardship and anything reminiscent of that time.[36] Women required garments that no longer needed to be ‘functional.’
The “New Look” ensemble on display in the exhibition is crafted from meters of plain-woven silk tussore, pleated wool crêpe, stiffened taffeta and is lined with silk. The unpadded round shoulders and small waist contrasted the highly padded shape below the hips to alter the feminine silhouette by creating a tightly fitted waist and a splaying skirt. [37] The tension between the upper and lower body emphasise and reconstruct the feminine silhouette, to return shapes that were reminiscent of the Victorian period.[38] These strong silhouettes are reflected in the display cabinet and the false architecture which was built around it.
The “New Look” was placed alone, slightly raised, in a pentagonal display vitrine in the centre of the space (see figure 2.1). The space has been built to replicate the original Dior House on 30 Avenue Montaigne, Paris. In the window displays of the House are garments by other designers which have been influenced by the iconic look. These inspired designs sit behind in the window up on either side of the “New Look” and look down upon it to draw the audience’s attention to the effect that the silhouette had on fashion industry. Not to mention the shape of the display cabinet means that the viewer is forced to walk around the garment and view it at all angles. The glass which the audience views the garment through allows the viewer to look closely but signifies that it is untouchable and therefore how extremely valuable the garment is (see figure 2.2) The display of the “New Look” could also be compared to the fundamental drawings of an artist, as the audience is immediately faced with the fundamental designs of Dior – the key design elements – when they enter the exhibition.
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[1] Florence Müller, Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams (New York, NY: Thames & Hudson, 2018), 3.
[2] Cynthia Freeland, But Is It Art? an Introduction to Art Theory (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001), 57.
[3] Valerie Steele, “Museum Quality,” 8.
[4] Florence Müller and Olivier Gabet, “Dior & Us” In Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams, 8.
[5] “CHRISTIAN DIOR, COUTURIER DU RÊVE” Musée des Arts Décoratifs, accessed March 1, 2019. https://madparis.fr/en/about-us/exhibitions/recent-exhibitions/christian-dior-couturier-du-reve/
[6] Font, "Dior Before Dior,” 29.
[7] Müller and Gabet, “Dior & Us,” 8.
[8] Remy Saisselin, "From Baudelaire to Christian Dior: The Poetics of Fashion." The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 18, no. 1 (1959): 109.
[9] Müller and Gabet, “Dior & Us,” 8.
[10] Valerie Steele, “Ups and Downs of Paris Fashion” In Paris Fashion: A Cultural History [Revised edition.] (New York: Bloomsbury USA, 2017), 243.
[11] Delphine Roche, “All about the Exhibition of the Month: Christian Dior, Couturier Du Rêve,” Numero, August 27, 2017, https://www.numero.com/en/Fashion/dior-musee-arts-decoratifs-olivier-gabet-florence-muller
[12] Steele, “Fashion Under the Occupation” In Paris Fashion: A Cultural History, 239.
[13] Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Annual Report (Paris: MAD, 2017) 61. https://madparis.fr/IMG/pdf/ra17_mad_21-06.pdf; Bonnie English, A Cultural History of Fashion in the 20th and 21st Centuries: from Catwalk to Sidewalk (London: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2013), 8.
[14] Müller and Gabet, “Dior & Us,” 8.
[15] Caroline Issa, “Inside Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams - the summer blockbuster fashion exhibition,” The Telegraph, July 4, 2017, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/luxury/womens-style/christian-dior-designer-dreams-musee-arts-decoratifs-paris/
[16] Roche, “All about the exhibition of the month: Christian Dior, couturier du rêve.”
[17] Font, "Dior Before Dior," 29; English, A Cultural History of Fashion in the 20th and 21st Centuries, 1.
[18] Font, "Dior Before Dior," 29; Bibby Sowray, “Christian Dior.” Vogue, April 5, 2012 https://www.vogue.co.uk/article/christian-dior ; Joelle Diderich, ”Paris Museum Sets Expansive Show for Dior’s 70th Anniversary.” WWD, April 24, 2017, https://wwd.com/fashion-news/fashion-features/paris-museum-dior-70th-anniversary-10874150/ ; Katy Donoghue, “Christian Dior: From Gallerist to Couturier of Dreams.” Whitewall, October 17, 2017, https://www.whitewall.art/fashion/christian-dior-gallerist-couturier-dreams
[19] Olivier Gabet, “Christian Dior: His Musée imaginaire” In Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams, 43.
[20] Roche, “All about the exhibition of the month: Christian Dior, couturier du rêve”; Pochna, Fashion Memoir – Dior, 10.
[21] Gabet, “Christian Dior,” 46.
[22] Christian Dior, Dior by Dior: The Autobiography of Christian Dior, translated by Christian Beatriz Lostalé (London: V&A Publishing, 2018), 59.
[23] Steele, “Museum Quality,” 18.
[24] Tina Isaac-Goizé, “Inside the Biggest Dior Exhibition Ever Staged in Paris.” Vogue, July 4, 2017, https://www.vogue.com/article/christian-dior-retrospective-fall-2017-couture
[25] “Christian Dior, Couturier Du Rêve” Mad Paris.
[26] Hannah Marriott, “Major Paris exhibition celebrates 70 years of Dior fashions.” The Guardian, July 4, 2017. https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2017/jul/03/major-paris-exhibition-celebrates-70-years-of-dior-fashions
[27] McNeil and Miller, “Christian Dior: the ‘New Look’ and reporting by Carmel Snow,” 107.
[28] Issa, “Inside Christian Dior.”
[29] McNeil and Miller, “Christian Dior,” 107; Valarie Mendes and Amy De La Haye, 20th-Century Fashion (London: Thames & Hudson, 1999), 128; Richard Martin and Harold Koda, Haute Couture (New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1995), 11.
[30] Stuart Emmrich, “Celebrating 70 Years of Christian Dior.” The New York Times, July 4, 2017. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/04/fashion/exhibition-christian-dior-paris.html
[31] Adam Gezcy and Vicki Karaminas, “The Body” In A Cultural History of Dress and Fashion: In the Modern Age, 72; Steele, “Ups and Downs of Paris Fashion,” 241’ Florence Müller, “1947” In Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams, 60.
[32] Mendes and De La Haye, 20th-Century Fashion, 28; Steele, “Ups and Downs of Paris Fashion,” 241; Hollander, “Dress,” 313.
[33] “Bar Suit” The Victoria and Albert Museum, accessed March 1, 2019, https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O75379/bar-skirt-suit-dior-christian/
[34] Jackson, The New Look: Design in the Fifties, 8.
[35] Dior, Dior by Dior, 38.
[36] Mendes and De La Haye, 20th-Century Fashion, 128.
[37] Susan Ward, “Textiles” In A Cultural History of Dress and Fashion: In the Modern Age, 28.
[38] Entwistle, The Fashioned Body, 93.
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