Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams

Christian Dior was born on January 21, 1905, in a wealthy merchant family in Granville, France. His father was engaged in the fertilizer business, and his mother, Madeleine, was a gentle, elegant, and noble woman. His mother’s beautiful image has always been the source of Dior’s endless creative inspiration. In 1910, Dior moved to Paris with his family. The strong artistic atmosphere of Paris and the exquisite works of art in the Louvre greatly attracted Dior, making him extremely interested in aesthetics.

From 1920 to 1925, Dior followed his family’s wishes and entered the Institute of Science and Politics to study political science in order to become a diplomat or inherit his father’s business in the future. From 1928 to 1931, he was a painter. From 1931 to 1937, he was a freelance designer. From 1937 to 1939, he was an assistant designer at Piguet clothing store. From 1941 to 1947, he was a designer at Lelong clothing store. In 1946, he opened his own store. In 1935, Dior went through a very dark time. Every day he had to search for job opportunities from small advertisements in newspapers. He had no fixed address. Sometimes he lived with friends, sometimes he slept on the streets. He had one meal a day and one meal a day. Eventually, he got tuberculosis. Despite this, Dior never collapsed. One day when Dior was deeply frustrated because he couldn’t find a job, a friend in the fashion industry suggested that he draw some fashion designs, but unexpectedly, they were very popular. Each design fully demonstrated his unique talent.

In 1937, he finally became a fashion designer for the “Pignet” company. At this time, World War II broke out and Dior was forced to leave Paris to reunite with his family. When he returned to Paris, his position as a fashion designer for the “Pignet” company had been replaced by someone else, so he had to become an assistant.

Christian Dior

February 12, 1947 was a glorious day. Dior held his first high-end fashion show and launched his first fashion series called “New Look”. This fashion has a distinctive style: the skirt is no longer long, emphasizing the curves of women’s breasts, hips, waists and shoulders, breaking the conservative and old-fashioned lines of post-war women’s clothing. This style caused a sensation in Paris and the entire Western world, leaving a deep impression on people and making Dior famous in the fashion industry. When the models appeared in front of them, people could hardly believe their eyes: the long skirt that was as big as the round table, the thin waist, the towering chest, and the hat that covered half of the eye at an angle… It immediately made people’s eyes bright, and the ladies sitting in the audience began to feel annoyed and uneasy about the short skirts and jackets they were wearing at the time. Dior was a great success that day. Soon, Dior successfully developed his rising business to the other side of the Atlantic Ocean – the United States 

with his first fashion series “New Fashion” . The news spread quickly throughout New York , and Dior finally took root on New York’s Seventh Street (a nationally famous street). Dior’s arrival brought the unique charm and color of European fashion to the hometown of “Uncle Sam”, which had once cut off contact with Europe due to the war. People began to say goodbye to miniskirts, lantern sleeves, flat shoes and cauliflower-style hats. Dior’s design also broke the Chanel – style fashion that was popular before the war. Dior’s wide-brimmed hat that half covered his face and the rustling long skirt with a large swing made people recall a more classical era. This is a new style that Dior emphasized. Dior boldly used black in his second creation. The circumference of the black pure wool long skirt was as long as 40 meters. Dior named the second work “Dierame”. Later, Dior planned to expand his business to Cuba, Mexico, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom and other countries. In just a few years, he established a huge business network around the world.

Christian Dior

In 1947, the first perfume named “Miss Dior” was released, followed by “Diorama” and “Diorissimo”. The “vertical shape” and “tulip shape” launched in the 1950s are the manifestation of Dior’s design concept of promoting femininity in fashion. In 1952, Dior began to relax the waist curve and raise the hem of the skirt. In 1953, the hem of the skirt was raised to 40 cm from the ground, which caused an uproar in European society. In 1954, the “H” shape designed to reduce the width of the shoulder and increase the hem of the skirt, as well as the “Y” and ” spindle ” series released in the same year, all caused a sensation. These simple and youthful straight-line designs still reflect his slender and gorgeous style, and always follow the standards of traditional women. In 1985, “Poison” was launched. In 1991, “Dune” was launched. 1955: Christian Dior held a lecture at the famous 

Sorbonne University in Paris, and more than 4,000 college students came to attend; Yves Saint Laurent joined Christian Dior and became Mr. Dior’s assistant.

On October 24, 1957, Mr. Dior died of a heart attack.