“Il était une fois”… or “Once upon a time” for us Anglo-Saxons. Once upon a time Christian Dior had his first runway show. In 1947, the New Look was born: from chapter to chapter, this style was developed, or rather propagated by the fashion house. These are the roots of a style in the process of establishing itself. This is the portrait of a label that, in just 10 short years, became the evidence of modernity. Between the lines, amidst documents from the archives and numerous eyewitness accounts of those who knew the couturier, Natasha Fraser-Cavassoni paints an intimate and vivid portrait of the brand’s founder. Then, it becomes the story of a discreet man, a man called “Monsieur Dior” by all. “Dior’s outfits were spectacular and made an impression. Simply saying, ‘J’ai mon Dior, et alors?’ was enough.” There’s no better formula than Lauren Bacall’s to perceive how Dior’s work was as revolutionary as it was fascinating. This myth is communicated through confessions from great actresses, loyal clients, models, and workshop couturiers. In the end we discover that Dior, the artist, is just as delicate as he is determined, just as fascinated by couture and femininity as he is by art and hedonistic pleasures.
Finally, once upon a time there was a story of love and conquest. A couturier-parfumeur, visionary and passionate who traveled the world to dress up women of every continent and invented luxury in the meantime. The elegance and modernity of his creations can only be reflected by snapshots of his dresses, fragrances, and other accessories since become mythic. The book Monsieur Dior il était une fois retraces the first years of an unequalled fashion house, of a fashion house who’s legacy is being carried on today by Raf Simons. “The combination of an imposing presence and an architectural line” is one of the tools in the French couturier’s arsenal that Raf Simons particularly admires.
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