Christian Dior, from art to fashion,
the same passion for the beautiful and the timeless.

Before becoming the great couturier that we all know, Christian Dior immersed himself in the Parisian world of culture and art, drawing from there the inspirations that would make the identity of his haute couture house.

In the 1920s and 1930s, Christian Dior explored the Parisian art world.

The young Christian Dior has always been passionate about art and beautiful things.

Once settled in Paris in the 1920s, he immersed himself in the cultural life of the capital, then in full swing. In particular, he became friends with Max Jacob and Jean Cocteau, he attended the Ballets Russes and the Swedish Ballets, discovered German expressionist cinema, visited many exhibitions and frequented museums assiduously. He even wants to enroll in Fine Arts. But faced with his parents’ refusal, he ended up at Sciences Po.

However, art remains a priority for Christian Dior. In 1928, he joined forces with his friend Jacques Bonjean to open a gallery on rue La Boétie. 

Both wish to exhibit the famous painters they admire (Picasso, Matisse, Braque, Dufy), but also represent young artists among their acquaintances.

For several years, Christian Dior fully lived his passion in the world of artists and gallery owners. 

Christian Dior in his office, an aesthete regular at the Kraemer Gallery.

Boutique Dior, avenue Montaigne. Paris.

In 1933, he even organized an exhibition, entitled “Surrealism”, bringing together works by Salvador Dalí, Alberto Giacometti, Max Ernst, Marcel Duchamp, Leonor Fini, Man Ray, Yves Tanguy, etc.

The financial crisis put an end to this era and Christian Dior then moved towards his other passion, fashion. First as a stylist, before creating his own fashion house just after the war.

In February 1947, he presented his first fashion show and invented a revolutionary style, the New Look, which marked the birth of seven decades of history and creation of the house of Dior. Art will continue to play a key role in the couturier’s career and creative process.
He will regularly pay tribute to the great artists of modern art, notably creating dresses called Matisse and Braque for his very first collection.

But it was with the 18th century that Christian Dior built the identity of his fashion house.

Whether in the style of her dresses, inspired by Marie-Antoinette, or in the decoration of the private mansion at 30 avenue Montaigne, thanks to the decorator Christian Bérard who decorated the fashion house with molded woodwork and furniture from this period .

A style preserved over the decades and which can be found in the current store.

Louis XVI chair with oval medallion.
By Georges Jacob (circa 1780) from Galerie Kraemer.