February 12th, 2022, will mark the 75th anniversary of Christian Dior’s first fashion show. The very same show that gave its name “New Look” – first coined by Harper’s Bazaar’s editor in chief Carmel Snow – to the French designer’s style, which is characterised by feminine silhouettes made of fitted jackets and corolla-shaped skirts. Inspired by Christian Dior’s innovative vision and flourishing heritage, Kim Jones envisions a Fall/Winter 2022-2023 men’s collection that revisits the codes of the fashion house. “I wanted to immerse myself in the archives, in the purity of the beginnings of the House, in its original impetus. We looked at the first collections and focused on the architecture, using these elements, and transforming them almost instinctively into modern masculine pieces, always with this joie de vivre that is at the heart of Christian Dior’s creations”, Kim Jones explains in the show’s press release.
Therefore, the British designer appointed in 2018, offers silhouettes revisiting the leading designs and savoir-faire of Dior’s ateliers. We can find the legendary “Bar” jacket, available in masculine versions or in long elegant coats, and some delicate floral embroideries ornamenting a shirt or jackets’ sleeves inspired by the archives. Not to mention the patterns and symbols dear to the designer, such as the star, the rose, the canework – taken from the back of Monsieur Dior’s neo-Louis XVI medallion armchair – appearing on quilted jackets, or the leopard print – inspired by his friend and muse Mizza Brircard – that unfolds in touches here and there throughout the collection. As for colours, along with Trianon gray – Christian Dior’s favorite, which decorated the house’s couture exhibits – plain black, white, sky-blue, or dark gray give the whole collection, playing with sportswear and formal styles, an additional hint of elegance.
This Dior Fall/Winter 2022-2023 men’s collection celebrates the 25th anniversary of the house’s collaboration with the milliner Stephen Jones, first invited in 1996 by John Galliano who was the artistic director of the women’s collections at the time. Victoire de Castellane, who has designed Dior’ Haute Joaillerie for more than 20 years, signs her second men’s piece – a diamond and emerald chain bracelet that completes Yoon Ahn’s extravagant jewels. Finally, Dior presents a new footwear collaboration this season, with two utilitarian pieces by the German label Birkenstock.
