Glamour Girl
“The calla lilies are in bloom again.” Thus spake Katharine Hepburn in the 1937 movie Stage Door.
But I’m not talking summer here. I’m talking fall and winter. Specifically, the Christian Dior Autumn/Winter 2010/2011 Haute Couture show in Paris.
Thanks to the feminine and sometimes kooky genius of designer John Galliano, the show was awash in color. Gorgeous, glorious color! This was one time when the gilding of lilies was called for.
First of all, the show was held at the Rodin Museum, one of the most beautiful spots in all of Paris. In addition to its sublime interior, its gardens are bursting with flowers. But Mother Nature had some competition this week, as Dior models sashayed down the runway in gowns and dresses that were veritable flowers unto themselves.
Against a backdrop of enormous orange parrot-tulips, new hybrids bloomed: of silk and tulle and even mohair. Hydrangeas, pansies, roses, daisies, asters, and calla lilies sprouted, in pink and mauve and lavender and gold and red and yellow and green, all newly embodied and given breath.
Even the models’ hairdos were swept up as if in bouquets, in some cases with florist’s cellophane, and their shoes were an extension of the floral theme, with tiny straps that looked like wispy vines.
Best of all, banished was boring black, appearing only in concert with vibrant colors, as in this ball gown and cocktail dress:
Romantic, dreamy, almost hallucinatory, the show was also a tip of the hat to Monsieur Dior himself, specifically his 1953 collection, dubbed “Tulip.”
There are several wonderful slideshows on-line where you can read about and see these dresses in all their glory:
Marie Claire, New Zealand Herald, The Sydney Morning Herald, Suzy Menkes in the New York Times, and Cathy Horyn in the New York Times.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 07/07/10 at 09:08 AM
