John Galliano Vintage Deco Inspired Bias Cut Dress
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Los Angeles, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU19622321612
John Galliano
Known for introducing rich theatricality and memorable fashion spectacles to the runway, John Galliano has enjoyed a singular career. The audacious British designer has garnered universal acclaim for genre-breaking collections not only at his eponymous label but also for Givenchy and Christian Dior.
From his embroidered absinthe-green Oscars gown for actress Nicole Kidman to the iconic sleeveless newspaper-print dress that Sex and the City’s Carrie Bradshaw made famous, Galliano’s intricate and multifaceted work is reliably newsworthy, drawing on history as often as it embodies a fresh and forward-looking sensibility, and over the years the designer has helped shape an ever-broadening new legion of enthusiasts for Parisian couture.
Born in Gibraltar but raised in South London by strict Roman Catholic working-class parents, Galliano attended the all-boys Church of England grammar school, where his flamboyance and interest in art attracted the attention of bullies. Eventually, Galliano ended up at the prestigious design and art school Central Saint Martins College (then called Saint Martin’s School of Art), where fellow British designers Stella McCartney and Alexander McQueen also trained.
Galliano flourished at Central Saint Martins. While a student, he worked in the costume department at the National Theatre in London. His graduate collection in 1984, dubbed “Les Incroyables” and named for post–French Revolution fashion lovers, was modeled by close friends of his and earned a standing ovation. The line ended up in the storefront windows of London luxury boutique Brown’s on South Molton Street, and Galliano’s first official collection — after he graduated — debuted at Paris Fashion Week in 1989.
In the early 1990s, Galliano’s relationship with his financial backer, Plein Sud’s Faycal Amor, ended, and by 1994, he was broke and sleeping on the floor of a friend’s apartment. Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour and then-Vanity Fair editor André Leon Talley stepped in and introduced the budding designer to Portuguese socialite and fashion patron São Schlumberger and others. At Schlumberger’s Hôtel Particulier, Galliano’s shows became the stuff of fashion legend. His collection, a blend of Japanese modernist style as well as nostalgia for Art Deco and 1940s’ tailoring, earned raves in glossy magazines and garnered the attention of Princess Diana, Madonna and other fashion luminaries.
Once the Galliano name was well known among the world’s most stylish set, the chairperson of LVMH, Bernard Arnault, appointed Galliano head designer of French fashion house Givenchy. One year later, in 1996, LVMH moved him to the design team at Dior, where he produced scores of celebrated looks for Dior Haute Couture. Today, Galliano is the creative director of Maison Margiela.
Shop vintage John Galliano evening dresses and gowns, handbags, jackets and other clothing and accessories on 1stDibs.
Christian Dior
When Christian Dior launched his couture house, in 1946, he wanted nothing less than to make “an elegant woman more beautiful and a beautiful woman more elegant.” He succeeded, and in doing so the visionary designer altered the landscape of 20th century fashion.
Dior was born in Granville, on the Normandy coast, in 1905. His prosperous haute bourgeois parents wanted him to become a diplomat despite his interest in art and architecture. However, they agreed to bankroll an art gallery, which Dior opened in 1928 in Paris with a friend.
This was the start of Dior’s rise in the city’s creative milieu, where he befriended Pablo Picasso and Jean Cocteau. After seven years as an art dealer, Dior retrained as a fashion illustrator, eventually landing a job as a fashion designer for Robert Piguet, and in 1941, following a year of military service, he joined the house of Lucien Lelong. Just five years later, with the backing of industrialist Marcel Boussac, the ascendant Dior established his own fashion house, at 30 avenue Montaigne in Paris.
Just two years after the end of World War II, the fashion crowd and the moribund haute couture industry were yearning, comme tout Paris, for security and prosperity, desperate to discard the drab, sexless, utilitarian garb imposed by wartime deprivation. They needed to dream anew.
And Dior delivered: He designed a collection for a bright, optimistic future. “It’s quite a revolution, dear Christian!” exclaimed Carmel Snow, the prescient American editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar, famously proclaiming, “Your dresses have such a new look.” The press ran with the description, christening Dior’s debut Spring/Summer haute couture collection the New Look. “God help those who bought before they saw Dior,” said Snow. “This changes everything.”
Dior’s collection definitively declared that opulence, luxury and femininity were in. His skirts could have 40-meter-circumference hems, and outfits could weigh up to 60 pounds. They were cut and shaped like architecture, on strong foundations that molded women and “freed them from nature,” Dior said. Rather than rationing, his ladies wanted reams of fabric and 19-inch waists enforced by wire corsets, and the fashion world concurred. The debut got a standing ovation.
In the subsequent decade, Paris ruled as the undisputed fashion capital of the world, and Christian Dior reigned as its king. With the luxuriously full skirts of his New Look, suits and his drop-dead gorgeous evening dresses and ball gowns worthy of any princess, Dior gave women the gift of glamour they’d lost in the miserable years of war.
On 1stDibs, find an exquisite range of vintage Christian Dior clothing, jewelry, handbags and other items.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Los Angeles, CA
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- Gianfranco Ferre Favorite Avant Garde Beaded Blue Evening Dress NEWBy Gianfranco FerréLocated in Los Angeles, CAGianfranco Ferre's highly architectural avant garde creation, designed with an art deco influence, is truly unique and imaginative in an amazing innovative and structurally breathtak...Category
Early 2000s Evening Dresses
- Christian Dior Chevron Pattern Evening Ensemble Inspired by 1950 Dior CollectionBy Christian DiorLocated in Los Angeles, CACirca 1999 John Galliano for House of Dior inspired from a little known rare 1950's collection by Christian Dior. Gown fashioned of black white and red ...Category
Late 20th Century Evening Gowns
- Rare 1980's Thierry Mugler "Show those Legs" Halter Hi Low Evening DressBy Thierry MuglerLocated in Los Angeles, CACirca 1980's Thierry Mugler rare kelly green shantung silk form fitting halter dress. Edgy hi fashion silhouette with strong lean lines; stylish hi...Category
1980s French Contemporary Cocktail Dresses
- Roberto Cavalli Rare Vintage Asian Inspired GownBy Roberto CavalliLocated in Los Angeles, CARoberto Cavalli vintage silk charmeuse bias cut gown. One of the designer's highly coveted styles in his early 2000 collections. Features eggshell white silk ground with Asian insp...Category
Early 2000s Evening Gowns
- Alberta Ferretti Bias Cut Silk Dress with Jewel DécolletéBy Alberta FerrettiLocated in Los Angeles, CAAlberta Ferretti cold shoulder striking blue grey silk charmeuse dress featuring a heavily embellished jeweled bodice. Features a bias cut drape and its jeweled embellishment in a de...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Evening Dresses
- Chanel Runway "Finale" Jeweled Car Wash Gown from Lagerfeld's Golden AgeBy Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld for ChanelLocated in Los Angeles, CARare Chanel black silk gown from Fall 2006 as seen on the runway. Gown fashioned of black silk/satin with attached large inverted "V" neckline encrusted with hand set clear crystals. Boned bodice constructed in pleated tiers extending into a long car wash skirt...Category
Early 2000s Evening Gowns
- VERSACE F/W 1993 Vintage Lace Detail Black Dress by Gianni VersaceBy Gianni Versace, Gianni Versace CoutureLocated in Berlin, BEVersace Fall Winter 1993 Vintage Lace Detail Dress Brand: Versace Designer: Gianni Versace Collection / Year: Fall / Winter 1993 Fabric: Wool / Lace Color: Black Size: IT42 Versace's fall winter collection featured beautiful gowns with lace details. This lace detail dress is a commercial design inspired by the elaborate runway evening looks. Made from wool it features two cut-out lace details at the shoulders, and another deep V lace cut out at the back. You can wear the dress backwards and have the deep-V at the front. With a high turtle-neck neckline and a sleek silhouette this is the perfect black dress - one you will wear again and again. Size Information: Marked size IT42 Measured flat and across Bust 45cm Waist 37cm Hips 47cm Total length 95cm (measured from centre back) This vintage Fall Winter 1993 Versace wool dress...Category
1990s Italian Evening Dresses
- ALEXANDER MCQUEEN 2018 Red Cut-Out Gown XSBy Alexander McQueen, Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueenLocated in Berlin, BEALEXANDER MCQUEEN 2018 Red Cut-Out Gown Brand: Alexander McQueen Designer: Sarah Burton Collection / Year: 2018 Fabric: Viscose / Silk Color: Red Size: ...Category
2010s Italian Evening Gowns
- AZZEDINE ALAÏA S/S 1988 Runway Knit Maxi Dress MBy Azzedine AlaïaLocated in Berlin, BEThe perfect black dress from Alaïa’s Spring Summer 1988 collection . Azzedine Alaïa gained his reputation by creating sleek dresses that hug the body, this dress is the ideal example...Category
1980s French Maxi Dress
- New LANVIN Duchesse Satin Vintage Gray Long Wedding Celebrity Gown US 2 4 FR 36By Lanvin ParisLocated in Goshen, KYSize: French 36 Brand: LANVIN Color: Light Dove Gray Season: Vintage Features: Strapless sweetheart neckline Draped detail throughout Ruffle detail at side Belt at waist Long leng...Category
2010s Wedding Dresses
- Vintage 1950's Neymar Couture Duchess Satin & Beaded Gown UK 4 US 0Located in Cheltenham, GBA once in a lifetime piece, this original 1950's Neymar Couture duchess satin gown, in the most sumptuous shade of cream, showcases true craftsmanship i...Category
1950s Ball Gowns
- Vintage Early 1940's Crimson Red Satin Evening Dress UK 10-12 US 6-8Located in Cheltenham, GBThis breathtaking early 1940's crimson satin dress, rendered in a full circle cut and tailored to perfection, is the perfect piece for that special occasion. The V shaped neckline...Category
1940s Evening Dresses
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
How John Galliano Caused Fashion Chaos around the Globe
The visionary designer epitomizes the pleasures and perils of irrepressible creative genius.
The Best Ways to Dress for Your Astrological Sign
Makeup and astrology expert Linda Mason dispenses fashion advice for every zodiac sign. Does your wardrobe match your horoscope?