History In The Making: Dior Appoints Maria Grazia Chiuri As Artistic Director
The first ever female to be at the helm of the house
It’s the news we’ve all long suspected (and very much hoped was true) and now, we can raise a collective #GirlPower fist in the air, as Dior has confirmed Maria Grazia Chiuri as its artistic director.
It was announced across the weekend that Chiuri was resigning from Valentino after 17 years with the brand (eight of which were spent as the co-creative director) and her move to Dior has been whispered about in fashion circles for months.
The confirmation of her appointment at Dior makes her the seventh couturier to take the hallowed helm at the house, and the first ever female. It’s reported that she will look after women’s haute couture, ready-to-wear and accessories, following Raf Simons’ deaprture late last year.
Maria’s first show for Dior will be RTW Spring 2017, set to show on September 30, followed by couture in January, which marks the start of Dior’s 70th anniversary year.
Sidney Toledano, the president and CEO of Christian Dior, told Business of Fashion that the first time he met with Maria, he knew she was “the one” to take over. “We were talking about the vision of the woman of today, of tomorrow, of the young generation. The woman in different occasions – when she works, when she is shopping, when she is going for dinner. [Maria] has global experience and big intuition, and at the same time she is really pragmatic. The way she talks about it all is very clear.”
The move means Chiuri’s design partner of 27 years, Pierpaolo Piccioli, will take the reigns solo at Valentino moving forward.
Maria released a statement shortly after the official announcement, saying, “It is a great honour to be joining the house of Dior. I measure the tremendous responsibility of being the first woman in charge of the creation in a house so deeply rooted in the pure expression of femininity. The endless wealth of its heritage continues to be a constant source of inspiration for fashion, and I cannot wait to express my own vision.” We can’t wait to see it either. – Maddison Glendinning