DIOR OF COURSE

DIOR AT THE V&A APRIL 2019

QUEUES FOR TICKETS?  DATES BEING EXTENDED? 
FOR ONCE THE EXHIBITION LIVES UP TO THE HYPE.  GO.
                                             

  

London was my destination last week.
Dior . How could I not ? I would say words fail me at it's fabulousness, but that would not make for a very long piece.  However, I do want to get the BUTS in here at the beginning.
First 'BUT'. A  fabulously successful exhibition means crowds and quite frankly several of the gallery spaces in the exhibition were just not big enough. Plus (second BUT coming up) The DIOR costume details were all at ankle level, so in a crowded space you cannot see the information as people are standing in front of it. Right, negatives out of the way. Let the wonderfulness commence.

Onward down a sweeping staircase and voila. Rue Montaigne is awaiting us.

Some excellent biography and photographs of M. Dior first and then Bar in all its glory.
Plus a few revisited Bar suits that had good points but nothing really came close to the original in my view.

First room had a selection of  dresses and suits
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Next Princess Margaret's 21st birthday dress in its own column of perspex. Sadly diminished from the froth of white skirts in the photograph we all know. Interesting to see up close. But sad as well as it looks so small and flat and is the colour of cold tea.

Far more interesting were the dresses in the room.

Half on high, so plenty of opportunity to check out the petticoats.


                             The remainder delicious and chic, like these examples.   


After this room we were into the House of Dior after Christian Dior. Each room now had in addition pieces from the other talents who took a turn at the helm of Maison Dior. In chronological order these talents were Yves Saint Laurent, Marc Bohan, Gianfranco Ferré, John Galliano , Raf Simons and now Maria Grazia Chiuri.


Light and bright, this summers-afternoon-with- couture-dresses was white, pink and sparkly by turns.
               




The next room was very dark and very colourful.
Fusions of many national ideas mixed with style and creativity in spades.

                         

 Into the light again after this. A light diffused through mauve and lilac petals and leaves and plants
covering the ceiling and walls.
                     
                                      

In a case on the wall was a tiny but perfectly formed dress made of flowers. (Well that's what it looked like.) It was made for a perfume campaign.

Proving that Galliano is not all about theatricality, look at these two on the left. Flowers made flesh...well material really...
                                                             
                                                                                                                   But CD designed this one                                                                                                                   and that's the summer dress for me



A trip through the different eras of the designers of Dior

         

The white room was a white out. A snow storm of white toiles, white floor, and white and mirrored ceiling. Just like being in a lightbox.


Apparently there is an automotive engineering design term 'body in white' for the stage in the process when the finished curves (or contours if you prefer) of a vehicle are decided upon. I wonder if there is a link with a toile?

A corridor of tiny things next. A wall of colours beautifully blended, softly merging into each other and flanked by a wall of magazine covers.

  


Through the door at the end and into the ballroom. Soft lights and glitter and sequins and gold and silver and feathers everywhere you looked. A slowly revolving dais showed fringes and dangling earrings off to a tee. Some of the garments making their leisurely twirl were very resonant of showgirl costumes. Think Las Vegas. The many others round the circular room were soft and flowing and more ballgown than clown.

      




The finale was simple but very effective. A  ballgown in 100% fairy tale style, accessorised with a fan from the beginning of time...Dior time that is. So cleverly displayed you saw the front and back and the sides all at once. Gorgeous.







This was the best costume exhibition I have ever been to. The talent of the different designers and their teams was breathtaking. The range of the styles and trims and colours were mesmerising. Such mastery of their craft. It all added up to couture perfection.
Merci M Dior.


Very great thanks to the geniuses at the V&A for this outstanding exhibition.