In this series of blog posts, Circa Vintage takes a deep dive into the history of some of our favourite designers. Today, it's the turn of fashion powerhouse Christian Dior.
In 1946, French designer Christian Dior founded one of the most renowned fashion houses in history. His first collection Corolle, also dubbed the "New Look", employed boned bodices, hip padding and corsets which created a distinctive voluptuous and feminine silhouette. The amount of fabric used in each outfit created a backlash after wartime rationing, yet the revolutionary New Look style soon put Paris at the centre of the fashion world post World War II.
In October 1957, Christian Dior died of a heart attack, just six months after appearing on the cover of TIME magazine. The company scrambled around to find someone to fill the job, eventually recruiting in-house and appointing a young Yves Saint Laurent as Artistic Director. Gianfranco Ferré came later and then Marc Bolan, as the brand attracted innovative designers who used Dior as a stepping stone to go on to great things.
John Galliano held the post of Creative Director for 15 years from 1996 to 2011. His haute couture and read-to-wear shows received acclaim across the industry season-upon-season, courting both celebrity and controversy with shows known as the "Homeless Show" and "S&M Show". These high-fantasty, high-budget performances are now seen as a moment of true art in fashion history - a lesson in how fashion can move an audience. Today, the house of Christian Dior remains synonymous with the upper echelons of fashion, creating future heirlooms for those lucky enough to shop there.