Dior Cruise 2022 Collection
Photo courtesy of Dior
Dior revealed its 2022 Cruise collection in Athens, Greece. Inspired by Christian Dior’s Haute Couture collection of 1951 that took place at the acropolis, Maria Grazia Chiuri reinvents the image of comfort mixed with elegance in this line.
Like all industries, fashion went through pivotal changes through the pandemic; while some brands deterred from presenting what may be considered wasteful cruise collections, other high-fashion brands such as Dior and Chanel continued on. A cruise/resort collection is meant to be ready-to-wear clothing for wealthy clients who take mid-season travels to climates different from their own. Typically, these collections have a mix of light spring or summer clothing with a few fall/winter pieces. From a sustainable standpoint, these collections are highly wasteful and are known for taking a toll on both the environment and the creativity of designers. In 2020, Gucci and Michael Kors joined the movement of only holding two fashion shows a year rather than five.
Recently, Dior presented its 2022 Resort Collection in Athens, Greece. Inspired by Christian Dior’s Haute Couture 1951 collection that was shot in front of the Parthenon, creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri reinvented Grecian motifs by adding modern, comfortable touches. With light, off-the-shoulder dresses paired with sneakers and rain boots, the theme that Chiuri was aiming for was movement and freedom — something we all lacked during quarantine. Seemingly so, Dior brought back the chunky sneaker trend in this collection, reminiscent of the Balenciaga Triple S. Clean, neutral colors dominated the runway with the exception of a few abstract-print sweatsuits and Grecian- blue blouses.
Shying away from the Greek cliches, Chiuri toured community designers in neighboring towns and collaborated with local artisans to bring an authentic touch to the Grecian-inspired collection.
The most surprising piece in the collection was a swan dress displayed at the end of the show. When thinking of this piece, most of us are reminded of the infamous Bjork swan dress from 2001, voted as one the most iconic red-carpet dresses of all time. Chiuri’s more elegant, “couture-esque” take, however, was inspired by the late actress Marlene Dietrich who wore a similar swan dress in 1935. According to Chiuri, the purpose of the swan dress was to evoke “Leda, the Spartan queen, a crucial character in Greek mythology.” Tap the gallery below to look through some of my favorite looks from Dior’s Resort 2022 collection.
DIOR Resort 2022
Chiuri’s inspiration for Dior’s swan dress was the late actress Marlene Dietrich, who dressed as Leda, a Spartan queen and important symbol in Greek mythology.
Bjork’s swan dress became one of the most iconic red carpet moments of all time.
