Centuries apart, Maria Grazia Chiuri and Catherine de Medici, two Italian women, met in Paris on the Dior runway.
Unveiled in the gardens of the Tuileries, in a stage imagined by artist Eva Jospin and a performance by dancer-choreographer duo Imre and Marne van Opstal, Dior‘s women Spring/Summer 2023 collection was inspired by Paris at the Renaissance and in particular the figure of Catherine de Medici, whose influence at court was not least of all sartorial.
In a setting similar to a gothic-style grotto made of paper cut-outs by artist Eva Jospin, which recalls the one once built in this garden by Catherine de Medici, to whom we also credit the construction of the gardens of the Tuileries, the silhouettes in telluric hues took us back to the 16th century, taking up many of the dress codes of the French court of the time. There were multiple nods to the Queen of France, through luscious Baroque-Goth getups replete with hoop skirts, gilded gloves, architectural corsets, black lace, and Medieval embroidered flowers.
The second major inspiration for this collection came from the brand’s archives and history. Doing research, Chiuri discovered a map of Paris in the archive dating to the house founder’s time, with Avenue Montaigne at its center. The designer made it a focal point of the collection. Omnipresent on the silhouettes, the pattern appeared on dresses, coats, corsets and pants … A true tribute to Paris, the city of adoption and heart of Maria Grazia Chiuri and Catherine de Medici.
©Dior
