For Dior‘s women’s creative director, Maria Grazia Chiuri, the starting point for the brand’s latest Haute Couture collection began with a woman who fell in love with Paris. Back in the mid-1920s, Joséphine Baker, an American-born Black singer, dancer, and activist, left the United States for a creative life in Paris. In the eyes of Grazia Chiuri, Baker represented a modern symbol of the time who brought two cultures and the effervescent world of cabaret to life from New York to Paris. After doing her research and pouring over lesser-known images of Baker, Grazia Chiuri chose to honour her in a more subtle way by focusing on looks she wore out as well as uniforms worn during WWI. The collection was shown against a backdrop of giant portraits by artist Mickalene Thomas of note-worthy Black and biracial models and actors symbolic of a new pantheon of women. Sitting front row were Dior’s Global Ambassador’s Anya Taylor-Joy and Yara Shahidi, as well other film heavyweights Baz Luhrmann and Kirsten Dunst. Deco-inspired beaded shifts, an off-the-shoulder gown of metallics and perfectly tailored grey skirt suits stood out on the runway. And in the end, it’s the elegance and simplicity of each piece will stand the test of time.

View the gallery for our favourite runway looks from the Dior Spring/Summer 2023 collection and a look at the stars in attendance.

Discover Dior’s Joséphine Baker-Inspired Haute Couture Collection

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