Dior’s Time Traveling Couture

Beginning with wide-skirted, corseted, pannier-dresses, the collection took a turn for the Rococo and pre-revolutionary France. From Antoinette, it shifted into more wearable, loose, NASA-esque coveralls that featured pastels and floral embroidery. Fitted skirts with petal-like edges went out with easy silk tanks, which were then succeeded by monochrome ensembles. Bright, flowered velvet jackets in white, mint, red, and pink provided a burst of color to these more conventional looks. Early 20th-century shift dresses and warm greatcoats followed. Next came wide-collared coats until the eventual return of the flared dress, this time with delicate lines and tulle skirts.

The cyclical wavering between pant, skirt, dress, and coat signified a variety uncommon in haute couture. Yet Simons’ weaving between decades revealed that his true focus was less on a type of garment and more on discovery. He explained, “I was interested in the process of finding something extremely modern, through something very historical.”