Zoltan Alexander
Mar 8, 2019
Updated: Feb 12, 2022
"Designer of Dreams" Christian Dior at the V&A from 1947 to the present day.
"There is no other country in the world, besides my own, whose way of life I like so much. I love English traditions, English politeness, English architecture. I even love English cooking." Christian Dior
Review by Zoltan Alexander
The exhibition is a reconfiguration of the 2017 Paris show, "Christian Dior: Couturier du Rêve", at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, with a different thematic journey, 60 per cent new content and an original installation celebrating the country a 21-year-old from Normandy fell in love with upon his first visit to perfect his English.
Spanning 1947 to the present day, this exhibition traces the history and impact of one of the 20th century's most influential couturiers, exploring the enduring influence of the fashion house, and Dior’s relationship with Britain.
Led by fashion and textiles curator Oriole Cullen and set designer Nathalie Crinière, "Designer of Dreams" is the first fashion exhibition to be staged in the V&A's new Amanda Levete-designed galleries, and the largest of its kind at the museum since "Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty" in 2015.
From the recreation of the Avenue Montaigne Dior boutique façade that welcomes visitors, to the temple de l'Amour in Versailles in the "Historicism" section and the expansive ballroom at the exhibition’s close – which features a seven-minute reel of shooting stars and golden glitter rain on the ceiling and walls – this is the V&A in its full glossy regalia.
And finally the film.
"Christian Dior, Designer of Dreams" at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris.
INDEX
COVER
V&A / Dior "Designer of Dreams"
/ photo © Courtesy of ZOLTAN+MEDIA
DIOR "Designer of Dreams"
Victoria & Albert Museum Cromwell Road, SW7 2RL London
/ extended until September 2019 / tickets: online reservation or very limited tickets are available to purchase daily at 10am from the Grand Entrance on a first-come, first-served basis; these tickets are for times throughout the day on that day only.