Rare Vintage S/S 2001 John Galliano for Christian Dior Silk Polka Dot print gown
View Similar Items
Rare Vintage S/S 2001 John Galliano for Christian Dior Silk Polka Dot print gown
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: 4 (US)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Montgomery, TX
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU26112297142
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. Vintage Dior bags, shoes, evening dresses, shirts and other garments and accessories are known today for their feminine and sophisticated sensibility.
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 couture 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.
- Versace Black Floral Detail Leather Dress 38 - 2 (4)By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXSize 38 or US 2/4 armpit to armpit 15 1/2" length 80" Made in Italy Brand new, with tags. Comes with Versace hanger and Versace garment bag 100% authentic guarantee PLEA...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Cocktail Dresses
- VINTAGE VERSACE BLACK 100% SILK Dress 42 - 6By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE Black Silk Vintage Dress A-lane Back zip closure Long sleeves Tassels Content: 100% silk Made In Italy Size 42 - US 6 armpit to armpit 17 1/2" length 37" ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Day Dresses
- VERSACE Black Tulle Dress w/ Patent Leather Sz 38By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE DRESS Fine and delicate black tulle is finished with patent leather and knit detail. Concealed hook and zip fastening 70% cotton, 30% nylon Made in Italy IT Size 38 ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Cocktail Dresses
- New VERSACE BLACK STRETCH-JERSEY OPEN BACK GOWN Size 44By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE BLACK STRETCH-JERSEY OPEN BACK GOWN Cut from smooth satin-jersey in 'Jet Black', this gown has slim silhouette and finished with silver hardwa...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Evening Gowns
- New Versace Petrol Blue Silk Military Inspired DressBy VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXNew Versace Petrol Blue Silk Military Inspired Dress Crystal embellished buttons Content: 100% silk, outer fabric: 100% viscose, lining: 100% silk ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Cocktail Dresses
- Versace Black Sleeveless Metal Chain Mesh DressBy VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE This sleeveless chain mesh shift dress features a crew neck, and chain mesh paneling. Two-way, exposed back zip. 100% cady silk Made in Italy Size 38 - US 2 Brand Ne...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Cocktail Dresses
- Mariano Fortuny Black Silk Peplos GownBy FortunyLocated in Riverdale, NYThis dress is made of finely pleated black colored silk with silk cording along side seams,shoulders and tunic hem with matte frosted colored glass beads threaded through the cordin...Category
Early 20th Century Italian Art Deco Peplos
Price Upon Request - Mariano Fortuny Black Peplos GownBy FortunyLocated in Riverdale, NYThis dress is made of finely pleated black colored silk with silk cording along side seams,shoulders and tunic hem with multicolored glass beads threaded through the cording.
...CategoryEarly 20th Century Italian Art Deco Delphos Gowns
Price Upon Request - Mariano Fortuny Black Delphos GownBy FortunyLocated in Riverdale, NYThis dress is made of finely pleated black colored silk with silk cording along side seams, and multicolored glass beads threaded through the cording.
Named after a ...CategoryEarly 20th Century Italian Art Deco Delphos Gowns
Price Upon Request - DOLCE&GABBANA Black and Beige Silk Dress with Adjustable Straps | Size 8US 40EUBy D&G by DOLCE & GABBANA, Dolce & GabbanaLocated in Cuggiono, MIThis babydoll dress is made of a black silk chiffon fabric and it is fully lined with a silk beige crepe de chine. It features a full circle skirt, a pair of adjustable straps and a ...Category
2010s Italian Babydoll Dresses
- Herve Leger "Belina" Black Asymmetric Fringe Eyelet Strapless Bandage Dress NWTBy Herve Leger by Max Azria, Herve LégerLocated in Chicago, ILHerve Leger "Belina" black asymmetric fringe metal eyelet strapless bandage mini dress. New with tags (MSRP: $1,990). Tight, sturdy and durable construction, built to showcase your c...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Cocktail Dresses
$896 Sale Price25% Off - Thierry Mugler Formal Elegant Rubber Tire Mesh Transparent Gown Cocktail DressBy Thierry Mugler CoutureLocated in PARIS, FRThierry Mugler Formal Elegant Dress Rubber Tire Mesh Transparent Gown Cocktail Maxi Dress Mesh/trasparent Sleeves! Very good condition, exept there is 1 cm tear at the end of the V ...Category
1990s French Evening Gowns
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
Too Soon for the Return of ’90s Fashion? As If
There's a renewed appreciation for the era's aesthetic, perhaps most notably among millennials seeking authentic, easy style.
14 Iconic Luxury Handbags and the Stories behind Them
When the name of a bag is as well-known as its brand, you know it's a classic.