Dior's feminine style still going strong
Opposing Coco Chanel's practical, straight silhouette, Christian Dior emerged with a nonfunctional design that emphasized the feminine look but was still elegant.
He was known particularly for the New Look of 1947: Narrow shoulders, a constricted waist, an emphasized bust and a long, wide skirt.
His single most famous design was perhaps the one from that year's collection: An ensemble with the simple name of Bar. The suit featured a natural silk pongee jacket closely fitted to a corsetted waist and padded below the waist at the hips.
The jacket was worn with a wide, pleated black skirt and, as Vogue put it, "your own shoulders". The skirt was long and everything else about the piece seemed radical.
Dior deliberately wanted to evoke the ceremony of dressing after World War II had banished it. He reinstated the importance of the fashionable whole, from specially ruffled corsets to fill out a blouse, to the perfect hat, gloves, shoes, pin and scarf.
He is then remembered for an entire look that shaped the prettiness of the Fifties, rather than a specific article of clothing.
Born in 1905 in the coastal Normandy town of Granville, he established his main house of couture in Paris in 1946, and 12 years later, he had salons in 15 countries with a staff of more than 2,000 people.
Dior's designs were nonfunctional but enormously popular in the post-war era.
He created the short, waistless sack dress and introduced the A-line dress.
He was also known for a tradition of beautiful fabrics, which led to the creation of international merchandising labels for gloves, furs and jewelry.
He also adjusted his creativity to meet the demands of society, which was ready to go into high gear, after emerging from World War II. He comprehended that fashion had become a matter of months rather than years, saying that "the world has changed its pace and fashion has changed with it (and therefore) novelty is the very essence of the fashion trade".
Dior became a dictator of styles, perhaps the last great one. His intention was quite specific: to make clothes that would suggest an upturned flower, a feminine image that would pay homage to the beloved women's clothing of his youth.
The Dior empire was enormous, the result of a particularly shrewd policy of multiple divisions, such as furs, perfumes, hats shoes and jewelry.
After Dior's sudden death from a stroke in 1957, the firm continued under Yves Saint Laurent in 1958 with his Trapeze collection. Marc Bohan came next with the image of youthfulness, followed by Gianfranco Ferre.
Today, Christian Dior means British designer John Galliano, its chief designer.
Part romantic, part maverick, the 42-year-old designer continues the legacy of Dior's ultrafeminine style, and has even established his claim to the crown for king of couture after Laurent retired from the fashion business.
-- Hera Diani