The main reason for my trip to Paris was to see the Christian Dior exhibition at the Musee des Arts Decoratifs. It celebrates 70 years of Christian Dior, showing the work of Christian Dior and the 6 artistic directors who followed him to create fantastic clothes, accessories and perfume for the design house.
Alongside 300 dresses the curators have gathered together documents, sketches, photographs, hats, jewellery, shoes and perfume bottles, as well as paintings, objets d’art and furniture which have helped to inspire the directors. Christian Dior loved art and gardens and his successors were equally inspired in the same way.
Christian Dior was a success from his very first show in February 1947. His revolutionary New Look was a triumph. Women were tired of the austerity of war and embraced the return to femininity.
He was the first to dress the entire woman from head to toe, dresses, shoes, hats, jewellery and perfume. It was the golden age of fashion photography and Dior surrounded himself with the best photographers. He was aware of the importance of the emerging women’s press and knew how to make an impact.
The exhibition begins with several rooms detailing the history of the man and the design house. Everything here is behind glass, so my photos are not perfect. There are full size dresses, photographs, doll sized creations and accessories.
There was a huge screen with a stunning photo of Princess Margaret and others dressed in Dior. The light changes and the actual dresses are seen behind the screen.
There is this iconic photography by Richard Avedon and the dress. (Both dresses were tiny with incredibly small waists)
Here are some of the delightful objects behind the glass.
The next section takes the viewer through a showcase of beautiful dresses in elegant settings representing the inspiration.
Cutout paper flowers fall from the ceiling in the next section, reflecting the floral theme of the garments.
This is one of my favourite dresses from the exhibition. It is a white cotton pique dress from the 1950s.
…and this
…and this
These 3 are all by Christian Dior himself.
From here the exhibition continues on the other side of the gallery. The famous New Look leads the viewer up the stairs.
Here we are led through a history of the creative directors who followed Christian Dior, beginning with Yves Saint Laurent…1957 – 1960.
He was followed by Marc Bohan who was with the house for almost 30 years…1960 – 1989.
Then came Gianfranco Ferre…1989 – 1986, who caused a stir…an Italian leading Dior?
John Galliano was next…1996 – 2011.
Raff Simons…2012 – 2015.
The current director is the first woman, Maria Grazia Chiuri who joined the house in 2016.
One of my favourite rooms is dedicated to the creators of the garments. Here you can see the detail and the work that goes into what sometimes looks like a simple garment.
A long walk along a hall lined with more fabulous garments leads to…
… a room decorated to look like a stunning ballroom.
The light changed.
There are dresses worn by movie stars, including Natalie Portman.
Emma Watson.
Julieanne Moore.
And yet another favourite, the dress worn by Elizabeth Taylor when she received her Accademy Award.
I would have had some more details of stars and dates etc, but a clever boy at the camera shop wiped all my photos. I recorded details of the clothes, designers and dates. I am working from memory here, so please excuse mistakes. Luckily I had uploaded most of the photos to my iPad or they would have all been lost and I would have been quite cross.
Take a look at the woman on the floor on the left of this photo. I think she was a bit overcome. I can understand this. It was hot and very crowded in the museum on both days I visited. It was difficult to take photos and even to breathe on some occasions, but it was worth every stifling moment to see this amazing collection.
The exhibition is on until January 2018. If you need a reason to visit Paris soon, this is it.
We had to make do with the exhibition T the NGV Melbourne – the Paris one is absolutely amazingly stunning & great photography Deb
By: Elizabeth Litzow on October 14, 2017
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It is an amazing exhibition. I wish I could see the Melbourne one too.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 14, 2017
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Absolutely stunning
By: Jan Fabretti on October 14, 2017
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It is huge and wonderful.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 14, 2017
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What gorgeous pieces. Thank you for showing it to us in such great depth! 😀
By: Lorraine @Not Quite Nigella on October 14, 2017
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I needed to go twice to take it all in.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 14, 2017
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My fave was the green and white just after the white pique… What a fabulous exhibition … so very French. Thanks for sharing it with us !! Jxx
By: Jan Williams on October 14, 2017
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I had lots of favourites! I really like the early designs. They are still current.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 14, 2017
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What an amazing collection Deb. I’m sure you enjoyed every moment!
By: Kerry & Jim on October 14, 2017
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It was great, apart from being hot and bothered. I tried to ignore that.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 14, 2017
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Crazy gorgeous! Lucky you to have seen the exhibition. Thank you for sharing.
By: sheilasunshine on October 14, 2017
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I know. I feel very lucky to have been able to come to Paris. The flight from Pisa was only €100 return.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 14, 2017
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Fabulous. This is the best coverage I have seen so far on this exhibition. Thanks for the share. So much of the collection are so familiar.
By: Dianne Cant on October 14, 2017
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I recognised many of the garments too. I loved seeing them up close.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 14, 2017
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Breathtaking…..
By: Christine Collins on October 14, 2017
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To see some of these beautiful things I have only seen in photos is amazing.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 14, 2017
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Stunning photography Thanks for sharing How fantastic to have actually been there and seen this exhibition – it was an amazing experience just viewing your photos
By: Ruth Musael on October 14, 2017
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It was wonderful to be there and I will have the photos to help me remember the experience.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 14, 2017
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What a fascinating retrospective! That poor woman collapsed on the floor reminds me of how I handle crowds, though. Good for you on getting most of the photos and working from memory!
By: MELewis on October 14, 2017
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I felt a bit sorry for her and quite understood how she felt.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 14, 2017
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Exquisite clothes. I watched the exhibition on a special tv program. Although it is always much better to be there… Lucky girl!
By: Mulino Dominillo on October 14, 2017
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I feel very lucky indeed.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 14, 2017
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How stunning well worth the visit to Paris.
I was fortunate enough to go to a Dior parade in Paris in 1979, a very special moment even though I felt like a fish out of water!
By: Kirsi Säde on October 14, 2017
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Any excuse to visit Paris.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 15, 2017
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Debra: Thank you for the beautiful pictures.
By: DeeSal on October 14, 2017
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I was happy to be there to see all the gorgeous things.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 18, 2017
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Friends of mine have seen the one here in Melbourne and loved it. The Paris one looks quite extensive though.
By: amindfultravellerblog on October 15, 2017
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I knew I would miss the one in Melbourne so I was lucky I could get to the Paris exhibition.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 15, 2017
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Breathtakingly beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing, Debra.
By: Wendy on October 15, 2017
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It was great that I could go to Paris to see it.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 15, 2017
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Wow!
By: Mallee Stanley on October 15, 2017
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Yes it is!
By: Debra Kolkka on October 18, 2017
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Wonderful photos Debra. Thank you – it was almost like being there!
By: Anonymous on October 16, 2017
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It is a stunning exhibition for anyone with an interest in fashion.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 16, 2017
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Agree all seem as wearable as when they were designed. Looking forward to the exhibition in Melbourne and looking back at your photos again to see what we ended up with in Australia compared to the Paris show.
By: Roslyn MacAllan (@roztaste) on October 16, 2017
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Christian Dior’s designs are as lovely today as they were then.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 18, 2017
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What a fantastic event to be able to visit…it is really spectacular. I was amazed at how tiny the waist was on many of the dresses.
By: Karen on October 18, 2017
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Princess Margaret’s dress was tiny. I once had a 24 inch waist.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 18, 2017
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I just loved all your pic Deb . I went to Paris on 16 th and 17th October and saw the Dior exhibition with my daughter. 💕 Donna Krosch
By: Anonymous on October 20, 2017
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I was there early in October and loved Paris and the exhibition.
By: Debra Kolkka on October 20, 2017
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So exquisite! And how tiny are the waists, 🙂
By: apollard on October 21, 2017
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[…] I was back in Europe in September and took a quick trip up to glorious Paris to revisit this wondeful city and see the spectacular Christian Dior exhibition. […]
By: A new year begins | Bagni di Lucca and Beyond on January 1, 2018
at 8:18 am