(Paris) Heels and corsets, those restrictive pieces from which women have taken centuries to free themselves, are making a strong comeback to give them power in the Dior collection inspired by Catherine de Medici.
Posted at 12:16 p.m.
“The idea that amused me is that there are elements in the clothes that serve to build a regal imagination”, tells AFP the Italian Maria Grazia Chiuri, artistic director of the women’s collections of Dior. .
Feminist, she diverts these elements that we would never have associated with her creative universe for this ” power dressing ironic”, modern and functional despite the historical references.
“I haven’t done it in the past and I’m satisfied because the reference comes from Catherine de Medici,” she explains.
PHOTO JULIEN DE ROSA, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
The Dior fashion show, accompanied by a dance performance, took place in a pavilion transformed into a grotto in the Jardin des Tuileries where Catherine de Médicis organized parties.
Small in size, Catherine de Medici, this Italian who arrived at the court of France in 1533, was the first to use platforms to be taller and structured her silhouette to impose herself.
The wedge shoes in the collection lift, but remain comfortable.
The corset which has an almost geometric shape is not integrated and becomes “an object with which we play to have fun”: we can wear it on a t-shirt or a shirt and we do not need help to put it on.
PHOTO JULIEN DE ROSA, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
The collection abounds in embroidery and lace, dear to Catherine de Medici, who had imposed them on the French royal factories.
Dresses reminiscent of baskets adapt to the body with adjustable bands that give them a “functional” dimension inseparable from ” power dressing “, this female clothing trend intended to show authority, appeared in the 1970s and had its peak in the 1980s.
The basque, sometimes hidden, sometimes manifest, outlines a sensual silhouette, reminiscent of the wide skirts worn at the court of Catherine de Medici.
The collection abounds in embroidery and lace, dear to this Italian aristocrat, who had imposed them on the French royal factories.
PHOTO JOHANNA GERON, REUTERS
“The idea that amused me is that there are elements in clothes that serve to build a regal imagination,” says Maria Grazia Chiuri, artistic director of women’s collections at Dior.
The parade, accompanied by a dance performance, took place in a pavilion transformed into a grotto in the Jardin des Tuileries where Catherine de Médicis organized parties.
The show to present the spring-summer 2023 ready-to-wear collection is also intended to be a “baroque party” as they were organized in the big cities during the periods of transition, sumptuous and theatrical, but crossed by a diffuse anxiety.
“In this heavy historical moment, fashion is the only territory where we can still play, that’s what I wanted to do at the moment. The situation is tragic, we have to find motivation to work,” underlines Maria Grazia Chiuri.