Dior Caning, Knot and Bar Cut. The codes of Dior are reinvented with a special take on Marc Bohan’s first collection for the house in 1961.

Dior Caning, Knot and Bar Cut: Dior is More Sixties Than Ever!

Maria Grazia Chiuri dived into the Dior archives of the 1960s to draw inspiration from a collection important in the history of Dior, and that of fashion.

In 1961, Marc Bohan, then artistic director of the house, presented a collection baptised Slim Look. In tune with the era of the the mini length, the Youthquake and more generally in tune with the sexual and aesthetic revolutions that then rocked the four corners of the world – Dior stamps a pop collection, all in legs and artistic inspirations.

But 2021 is not 1961 and, to better update the Dior codes, Maria Grazia Chiuri has injected a high dose of casualness into the Dior silhouette for Spring / Summer 2022.

“These silhouettes reveal cuts and graphic effects transposed into yellow, green, red, navy, orange, raspberry, like a color block revisiting of the aesthetic of Marc Bohan. These colors also symbolize the spatial geometries at the heart of the games designed by artist Anna Paparatti in order to question the rules of art and life. Maria Grazia Chiuri was inspired by her unique looks and wanted her to design the scenography of the show as a “game of the absurd” reflecting the spirit of her various works” thus noted Dior.

Among the codes that are easily spotted – the Dior Caning, the knot and the Bar Cut serve as references!

Dior Caning, the one that Christian Dior himself drew from the caning of a Napoleon III armchair which was then used as an interior decoration in the salons of 30 Avenue Montaigne is repeated in the 2022 collection on jackets – textured and puffy – styled as a boxy fit.

The knot, Christian Dior’s adored gimmick, and whose story is revealed here, appears on evening dresses and cocktail dresses. In a more couture oriented gesture that balances colours, they are more amused than in the ordinary!

Finally, it is the Bar Cut that gives two silhouettes the organic dimension of the flower woman. But for Spring / Summer 2022, this Bar Cut is even more subtle, on black sets that quietly sign the iconic Dior allure.