Vintage John Galliano for Christian Dior long silk dress
View Similar Items
Vintage John Galliano for Christian Dior long silk dress
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Montgomery, TX
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU26112282822
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.
- NEW VERSACE EMBELLISHED RUCHED YELLOW Dress 42 - 6By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE This Cocktail dress features ruched design out and embellishments. Crafted in 100% viscose and 100% silk, it hugs your body flawlessly. Content: 100% viscose outer fabr...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Cocktail Dresses
- Versace Atelier Gold Metal Fringe Tie Dyed Gabardine Dress Sz 38By Atelier VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVersace Atelier Gold Metal Fringe Tie Dyed Gabardine Dress Tie dyed silk gabardine base with all over metal fringing. Halter neckline with leather strap and buckle closure at bac...Category
2010s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- New Versace Versus Metal Mesh Animal Print Dress 38 - 2By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE METAL MESH DRESS VERSUS COLLECTION A truly phenomenal piece from the house of Versace ! A real "must-have"! Animal ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Cocktail Dresses
- F/W 2006 Look #55 VERSACE NUDE SEQUIN EMBELLISHED LONG DRESS GOWN 42 - 6By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXBRAND NEW VERSACE DRESS F/W 2006 Look #55 Finalee gown! This dreamy Versace creation is the perfect blend of romance and fashion-forward style. Size 42 or US 6 100% silk M...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Evening Gowns
- Collectible A/W 1997 GIANNI VERSACE COUTURE EMBELLISHED RED GOWN Sz 42By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXA/W 1997 GIANNI VERSACE COUTURE EMBELLISHED RED GOWN Size 42 Tags attachedCategory
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Evening Gowns
- VERSACE BLACK VISCOSE LONG GOWN DRESS with OPEN BACK 42 - 6By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE Black Viscose Long Dress Deep V-neck Strap around the neck Open back The cut-out front exposes the legs Content: 100% viscose Lining: 100% viscose IT Size 42 - US 6 ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Evening Gowns
- Leonard of Paris Pastel Silk Chiffon Day / Evening DressBy Leonard of ParisLocated in New York, NYPretty pastel silk chiffon Leonard of Paris special occasion day / evening dress. Bodice has a ruffled capelet that flows from the center of the dress...Category
Late 20th Century French Day Dresses
- Mariano Fortuny Sienna Peplos GownBy FortunyLocated in Riverdale, NYThis dress is made of finely pleated sienna 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 Peplos
Price Upon Request - Mariano Fortuny Claret Delphos. Provenance Tina ChowBy FortunyLocated in Riverdale, NYThis dress is made of finely pleated claret colored silk with silk cording along side seams, and multicolored glass beads threaded through the cording. The beads are amber glass with...Category
Early 20th Century Italian Art Deco Delphos Gowns
Price Upon Request - Mariano Fortuny Rare Shell Pink Long Sleeved Delphos GownBy FortunyLocated in Riverdale, NYDescription: This dress is made of finely pleated shell pink colored silk with silk cording along side seams, and multicolored glass beads threaded through the cording.
CategoryEarly 20th Century Italian Art Deco Delphos Gowns
Price Upon RequestTwo Bill Blass Couture Beaded Tops. New Still Retaining Their Original PricetagBy Bill Blass, Bill Blass for Neiman MarcusLocated in Buchanan, MITwo Bill Blass Couture Beaded Tops. New Still Retaining Their Original Pricetags. Priced Per Top. THE FIRST Nude silk chiffon with red thread circle embroidered...Category20th Century Blouses
Vintage 1930's Gold Silk Lamé & Beadwork Gown UK 10 US 6Located in Cheltenham, GBThis truly magnificent 1930's gold silk lamé dress, embellished with trailing gunmetal grey and silver beadwork, is a phenomenal piece to add to your e...Category1930s 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.