Renewed Revolution at Dior Autumn/Winter 2018-2019
1968: a year of global transformation driven by a restless young generation with a desire for a better world. It was a year of new rules, new ideas and a new definition of fashion. Former Vogue US editor-in-chief, Diana Vreeland, put it best when she coined the term “Youthquake”.
It is this very year that, 50 years later, has struck a chord with Dior Artistic Director Maria Grazia Chiuri. Her Autumn/Winter 2018-2019 collection is a reflection of those times, which in turn mirrors our own.
The clothes — like the women they are inspired by — speak for themselves. There was the opening look of a embroidered knit sweater that declared, “Non!”; another was boldly emblazoned with the peace symbol.
Recalling the individualistic style of the French youth in the late '60s, the collection was filled with kilts of different lengths and materials, paired with leather and shearling jackets for a masculine edge.
However, Chiuri's message of authenticity was perhaps best expressed through the abundance of gorgeous patchworks, each composed of fabrics drawn from a single heritage.
It didn't just end with the clothes. The runway, too, echoed the revolutionary spirit of Chiuri's collection. Set within an installation at the gardens of the Musée Rodin, the space was transformed over a span of three weeks with a team of 150 people to feature vintage protest posters and call-to-action slogans. Despite most of these being dated in 1968, they hardly looked out of place with the world's current political climate — which was Chiuri's point exactly.
