Maria Grazia Chiuri’s Feminist Mission Goes Beyond Slogans
A portrait of Chiuri, made by Mickalene Thomas for ELLE’s October issue.
Maria Grazia Chiuri, the creative director of Dior, is looking at me from the sand-gray couch where she is calmly perched in a giant, airy studio in Paris. She’s dressed in jeans, a white blouse, and sandals, with her platinum hair pulled back; around her, everyone is moving. Stylists in face masks consult each other as they study photos on moodboards. Fit models walk down a makeshift catwalk. I try, but fail, to get a glimpse of what, exactly, they are wearing. Chiuri has just released her fall couture collection as a short film, with models frolicking in ethereal dresses through a lush landscape—online only, the way collections have to be shown during a global pandemic. While the lockdown has been conducive to designing finely crafted, unique pieces, actually making clothes has been tricky. “It’s difficult to travel in Europe. It’s difficult to see things. It’s also difficult to find models,” Chiuri says. “It’s impossible to go fast.”
A still from the fall couture film.
So she’s been taking it slow. Chiuri collaborated on Zoom
DON'T MISS A THING
Since its inception in , the Christian Dior brand has flourished as one of the world&#;s most famous and highly-regarded fashion houses. The Haute Couture Label revolutionized the meaning of elegant style, pairing classism and modernity to create striking yet feminine designs. Maria Grazia Chiuri has continued that legacy, adding her own feminist flair to the brand&#;s iconic collections.
For more than half a century in the world of couture, the fashion company has proved transformative; pioneering a chic, timeless look that continues to entrance us. As the first-ever female artistic director in Dior’s seven decades of male leadership, Maria has helped bring the fashion house into the 21st century.
The former Valentino co-creative director has made an incredible impact on the fashion house, using the runway as a platform to spread messages of women empowerment, feminism, and the arts.
I love flowers. I have flowers everywhere at home. I can make a beautiful dress with flowers. But women are not as simple as flowers. Women are much more.
Maria Grazia Chiuri&#;s Story
Born in Italy in , Maria spent much of her childhood around the dinner table discu
“I Don&#;t Think About Feminism”: Maria Grazia Chiuri on Dior’s New Look
What’s your go-to silhouette?
I appreciate the possibilities of the Monsieur Dior silhouette. I have worked significantly on Marc Bohan’s version, the creative director who deftly interpreted the revolution of the ’60s, an era I hold dear.
Jacket and Skirt Haute Couture Spring-Summer .
Vest, Shirt, and Beret Autumn/Winter
What kind of music do you listen to while you work?
I love Italian music, particularly Jovanotti. He gets the energy flowing!
Which country inspires you the most?
India is where my heart lies.
If you could dress anyone, who would it be?
I would have liked to dress Carla Lonzi. She was an influential critic of Italian art who made the bold choice to leave the art world and turn to feminism.
Headpiece and Jacket Spring/Summer Haute Couture
Jacket, Shirt, Skirt, and Tie Cruise
Why is it important to have female creative directors?
In all working environments, and particularly in the arts, women struggle to reach the top. Unfortunately, they are still chained to the preconceived notion that they must make comfortable fashion. Fashion that meets
The Female Gaze: Maria Grazia Chiuri Is Changing The Narrative At Dior
‘Whoo! Whoo! Whoo! Whoo!’ some 21 models chant backstage, the napes of their necks framed by U-shaped, Frida Kahlo-esque braids, each decorated with a single gold butterfly clip suspended in the centre. As the women dance and jump around Maria Grazia Chiuri, it looks like the designer is surrounded by a flight of monarchs breaking free of their cocoons.
Watching Chiuri with the cast of her cruise show in Mexico, I get the sense that this is a woman having the last laugh. Between ambitious, critically acclaimed destination shows spanning Mumbai and Mexico City, the year has felt like an ultimate triumph, a masterful flex for the creative director whose time at Dior has been a standout success story.
She’s that rare designer whose clothes can strike the balance between wearability – an easy prairie skirt, say, or crisp shirt with just the right amount of slouch – and intellectualism (Chiuri is a voracious reader who imbues her work with wide-ranging cultural references from Judy Chicago to Simone de Beauvoir). She’s reached that Holy Grail position between (wildly successful) profitability and critical
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