If I look at me, I can see I have not landed on my feet at that moment. Dior and I: seven things we've learned about Raf Simons But hiring and training employees to pull that off can be a challenge. Raf Simons' First Dior Show Draws Nine Major Fashion Designers It's now looking and then swiping to the next thing looking, next; looking, next; looking, next; next, next, next, nextthere's less dialogue and engagement with it in general []There weren't that many things reaching us [in my youth], so that when we picked up on something, we went in-depth. The latest title to join the fashion film genre is Dior and I, the documentary that enters the House of Christian Dior as the brand's new artistic director Raf Simons created his first. From van Eyck to van Dyck, the great Flemish portraiture of the past is summoned up in the current haute couture collection, images that Raf Simons grew up with. I have also had the chance over the last few years to benefit from the leadership of Sidney Toledano. Melding the everyday, pressure-filled world of fashion with mysterious echoes from Diors past, the film is also a colourful homage to the long-serving seamstresses at the couturier, as history is once again created at Dior.More from Madman Films: http://www.madmanfilms.com.auInstagram: http://www.instagram.com.au/madmanfilmsTwitter: http://www.twitter.com/madmanfilms Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/madmanfilms Mr. Simons didnt just put Dior in a new era by wiping clean any vestiges of the past two decades. ", "Everyone is paying attention to the wrong thing in my opinion. VIDEO:Lisa Immordino Vreeland Talks Diana Vreeland Biopic, The Eye Has To Travel. More importantly is what this show actually does for couture. Vogue. It's the clothes, it's everything, the Internet.". At the 2016 Dior cruise presentation, we also chatted with Dakota Fanning and Teresa Palmer in the South of France. This morning, Christian Dior announced that Raf Simons will leave his position as creative director. Was this Raf Simons' most significant Dior show yet? | Dazed I want to thank Mr. Bernard Arnault for the trust he has put in me, giving me the incredible opportunity to work at this beautiful house surrounded by the most amazing team one could ever dream of. With this collection from Mr. Simons, there are plenty of real-life options for women. Dior - 20AW 013D585BY989 37. Giorgio Armanis Priv Couture for Fall 2023 Was an Ode to theRose, Riots in France Poised to Dent Luxury Sales:Report, Pharrell Williams Debut Show for Louis Vuitton Garnered More Than 1 Billion Views, Dior Channels Rebellious Heroines With Fall Campaign, As Paris Couture Week Grows, Organizers Grapple With Gridlock, They Are Wearing: Paris Couture Fashion Week Fall2023, Backstage at Armani Priv Couture Fall2023. HOW THIS COLLECTION CHANGES COUTURE At the same time, however, I have several concerns about this collection. My generation especially is shifting now like me and Phoebe [Philo], Nicolas [Ghesquire] and Marc [Jacobs]. Photo by Getty Images. Greener, left-field talents like Maxime Simoens is seen as less of a contender than he was in 2012. The collection is a tribute to the Flemish masters of art. Balenciaga Long shirt. And it was a liberation for Raf Simons, too, who wanted to move beyond his own minimalist heritage by injecting a bit of sensuality and emotion into his pared down style. We have a lot of conversation about it: Where is it going? Dior could also possibly resume discussions with designers it had targeted in the wake of Gallianos exit, an elite list that includes the likes of Lanvins Alber Elbaz and dynamic New York duo Proenza Schouler. This was clear even when the documentary premiered. Raf Simons | BoF 500 | The People Shaping the Global Fashion Industry The fashion world has been curious to know ever since the Belgian designer abruptly quit the venerable French house two weeks ago, on amicable terms as they keep reminding us. For me, I had to go to the core of the relationship of Raf and Dior, says Tcheng. Raf Simons Presents a Stellar, 'Sexy,' Spring Menswear Collection Just Days Before His Dior Debut. Raf has been an inspiration since Day 1, said the rapper A$AP Rocky, who could hardly contain his fandom. Its not only the clothes. And getting used to the adoration does affect your personality; this is what happened to Christian Dior himself., In the contrast with Christian Dior, what Tcheng actually sets up is a self-consciously Hitchcockian premise for Simons: I thought it was likeRebecca, with the girl feeling trapped by the memory of the woman who had inhabited the house before her. In effect, Raf Simons is positioned as the innocent second Mrs de Winter in the film, intimidated by the imagined, knowing, ideal of the first Mrs de Winter, Rebecca, or in this case, Christian Dior. Hannah Yakobi is an award-winning journalist and communications specialist. WWD and Women's Wear Daily are part of Penske Media Corporation. Photo by Getty Images. What he did at Jill Sander? What we should ask is will we have enough creative people who are strong enough and willing to do what is necessary right now to follow that madhouse. The designer made his womenswear debut at Jil Sander, where he was artistic director from 2005 to 2012. Every season I see so many things evolving at such a speed that I think certain creative people, including myself, are just not willing to do it any more. I think maybe I do it naturally because Im not really a fashion person. Sign up for WWD news straight to your inbox every day. Travelling from innocence to experience in the collection, and essentially impacted by the designers own Flemish roots, she mirrors somewhat Simons own journey as a designer at Dior. As for Simons, his next move remains unknown, though the designer may be restrained by a non-compete clause, typical in this kind of role, that would temporarily prevent him from working for rival companies. Elizabeth von Guttman, A$AP Rocky, and Alexia Niedzielski. One thing that always irked me about Gallianos attitude towards this fashion label (and I know that many will support me on this but many will also disagree) was his extreme mixing of fabrics, styles, objects and items of various inordinate nature (you may recallmy April columnregarding this). In the weeks leading up to the Dior Spring 2016 show, Simons talked to anyone who'd listen, including Cathy Horyn in a wide-ranging interview for System, about the relentless, punishing pace of . While being both respectful of the history and codes of the house, and yet anxious to ground Dior in the reality of today, he has managed simultaneously to grow the business overall by 30 per cent at last count and mould Dior collections in more of his own, contemporary image. Unsound Rags on Instagram: "ID ON EVERYTHING - The Unsound Rags team Simons' statement continued: "Christian Dior is an extraordinary company, and it has been an immense privilege to write a few pages of this magnificent book. So it became complicated and I decided to get out. But, as in all creative processes, an obstacle becomes an asset. Paris--The question on everyone's . In recent years, Dior has enlarged its network of celebrity faces, unfurling dedicated campaigns featuring Marion Cotillard for the Lady Dior bag, Jennifer Lawrence for the Be Dior and Rihanna for the new Diorama model. His eponymous label, launched in 1995 and shuttered last year, turned him into a cult designer in menswear, with creations that melded symbols of counterculture with reinterpretations of uniforms. There was a lot of very positive press coverage and everyone . None of the three men commented beyond the one-page statement. The latest fashion news, beauty coverage, celebrity style, fashion week updates, culture reviews, and videos on Vogue.com. Simons emerged as a frontrunner for the Dior job after talks with Marc Jacobs, then creative director at sister company Louis Vuitton, failed to produce a deal. The Most-Viewed Men's Spring/Summer 2024 Shows on - Vogue Television provided a gateway to fashion through programs like CNNs Style with Elsa Klensch.. Raf Simons Explains Why He Left Dior for Calvin Klein - Highsnobiety This is the ultimate Flemish inheritance of Raf Simons, and what makes the latest couture collection a significant one. In the middle of it all was Simons. I wanted to show how difficult it is for Raf to do this the psychology of it, when he is surrounded by peoples expectations of Christian Diors almost reincarnation.. Designer Raf Simons Exiting Christian Dior - WWD Get all the top news stories and alerts straight to your inbox. It is a decision based entirely and equally on my desire to focus on other interests in my life, including my own brand, and the passions that drive me outside my work. Long Nguyen is the co-founder and style director of Flaunt. Simons, 47, made the decision to leave Dior after he and the company failed to reach an agreement on a new employment contract, though the parting was amicable, according to sources. It was a fantastic experience and a fantastic time. It shows why he became a fashion designer in the first place, the new attitude he has brought to the couture inherited from the realists of the 90s and why that attitude matters in the 21st century in keeping the couture a living, breathing craft the supreme craft in fashion. Photo by bfa.com. A MORE STREAMLINED AND ACCESSIBLE APPROACH Proportions were streamlined and cuts were precise to show off the contours of the body. And this was not really about John Galliano; this is about the future, what Raf Simons was gonna do. Raf Simons's First Dior Collection - The New York Times Simons, on the other hand, brings a fresh feel with his latest line. In organic terms, stripping out the impact of currency, the improvement in the three months ended Sept. 30 stood at 5 percent. There is a concentration on the drapery of fabric; the idea of drapery and gesture came from Flemish painting. During dinner, Marisa Berenson was asked to put Simonss exit in the context of the history of the label and French fashion. Technically, I found myself trying to push the boundaries of how we construct a film in the use of voiceover of Christian Dior, trying to conjure this ghost of Christian Dior, and creating a much more immersive and cinematic experience for the viewer. His swan song at Sander won a standing ovation, opening with a series of roomy coats in makeup shades that the models clutched at their throats, and climaxing with prim cocktail dresses licked with Latex. But it is also about the Flemish master of fashion:Martin Margiela. Without Martin Margiela Raf Simons would not have become a fashion designer. I thought about it for a while, and I didnt know if I wanted to acknowledge it or not. Simons skillfully combines his craftsmanship with his signature classic cuts and Diors renowned aesthetic of elegance. So we decided not to really go into that, because there were so many other things we wanted to talk about. Sources said talks recently reached a stalemate, with sadness on both sides that a compromise could not be reached. Dior and I - Raf's Process - YouTube 2023 Fairchild Publishing, LLC. Magazine, the Ottawa Citizen, Canwest newspaper network and dozens of publications around the world. It would be great to see him step out of his comfort zone and experiment even further he is an incredible designer and will undoubtedly do great things for Dior. Paris--The question on everyone's mind prior to Raf Simons's show last night was whether. Kristina Rodulfo is the Beauty Director of Women's Healthshe oversees beauty coverage across print and digital and is an expert in product testing, identifying trends, and exploring the intersections of beauty, wellness, and culture. The motif of the camera, the mirroring, the use of Christian Diors voice-over stressing the public versus the private It was about the idea of someone being dispossessed of his own image in a way. It led to the cape coats with the concentration on one sleeve, an idea that is often seen in portraiture. After being outspoken about the insane pressures he faced while leading a fashion house, he's. A number of interviews conducted before the split have been published, but Simons himself has maintained a Garbo-like silence. Now, imagine a designer who is producing his first show for a renowned fashion label that has fallen from grace about a year ago. Its the clothes, its everything, the Internet.. 2023 The Hollywood Reporter, LLC. Having watched the show online and viewed about a dozen photography essays from the event, I have concluded that this collection is very much in-line with Diors classic glamourous look. Frdric Tcheng's film Dior and I sees Raf Simons at the start of his journey with Christian Dior, beginning with his first haute couture collection and show for AW12.As a document of a moment in time, the film is very telling in terms of how Raf Simons has reached the point he is at today. Successors to the founder who ignited post-war Paris with his extravagant, full-skirted New Look, and whose brief career ended with his death in 1957 also included Yves Saint Laurent, Marc Bohan and Gianfranco Ferr. On stage at the gala, chief executive Sidney Toledano described their relationship now as a bridge of friendship. Their chapter is ending on a good note because, at the end of the day, Dior is not defined by any one designer. In a nod to womens changing lifestyle, the giant ball-gown is banished from the new couture vocabulary, now replaced by more streamlined versions like a white strapless balloon-skirted gown embroidered with degrade beading that hits at the ankles, or a minimalist ballgown skirt embroidered with blue peonies and paired with a simple long sleeved tee. After the Dior-sponsored Guggenheim International Gala, a crowd took over the stately Bemelmans Bar and turned it into a nightclub. It's very different to how things work in fashion right now. The 27 Best Summer Dresses to Wear for Casual and, Rodartes First Bridal Collection Just Launched Exclusively, The 20 Best Designer Coffee Table Books for Luxury, New Photos of Donald Trump Show He May Not Be Heeding the Strict Legal Warnings, Robert De Niro's Grandson Leandro De Niro Rodriguez, Who Acted in 'A Star Is Born,' Dies at 19, 'The Other Two' Ending at Max Amid HR Complaints, Alabama 8-Year-Old's Lemonade Stand Reported To State Labor Department. 2023 Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Raf Jan Simons (Dutch pronunciation: [rf simns]; born 12 January 1968) is a Belgian fashion designer.Beginning in furniture design, Simons launched his own menswear label in 1995. Those interests include Simons eponymous fashion house, which is expected to continue showing its collections in Paris. What new storytelling approach did you take for Dior and I? That is partly due to the system that fashion has adopted. His mens collections have also referenced artists including Christopher Wool and Robert Ryman. The list below reveals the most-viewed men's shows of SS24 on Vogue Runway. It is speeding up and up. You go in very prepared you talk and read and research as much as you can. RAF SIMONS()RAF SIMONS 22SS . Raf Simons makes Christian Dior travel through history | Reuters The first thing I saw and what was most confronting when I saw the movie was my own fear Raf Simons, The film became about the transformation of Raf; how one becomes a different person through his actions, says the films director, Frdric Tcheng. Oct. 22, 2015 In its second major creative upheaval in the last five years, Christian Dior, the Parisian couture house that is the cornerstone of the LVMH Mot Hennessy Louis Vuitton luxury. While it may sound like a short period of time, he worked on an astounding 20 collections. The ruling may accelerate the backslide, experts say. Long Nguyen is the co-founder and style director of Flaunt. Raf Simons Bids Farewell to Dior - The New York Times Written by fashion journalist Tim Blanks, the tome features photographs by Laziz Hamani alongside images by the likes of Tim Walker, Paolo Roversi, Peter Lindbergh, Willy Vanderperre and Sarah Moon. His collections for the house referenced artists including Andy Warhol and Sterling Ruby, translating the latters spray-painted canvases into duchess satin dresses. High-end brands are counting on brick-and-mortar retail to deliver the sort of personalised shopping experiences that cant be replicated online. It is they that provide the inspiration for abstraction, detail, something more feminine and some of the iconic silhouettes but it is the Flemish who hold sway, with the drama, the attitude and the perversity. Simons was Diors sixth couturier. George Michaels Freedom 90. 2023 Breaking Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Raf Simons: The Luckiest Guy in the Upper East Side - W Magazine I have also had the chance over the last few years to benefit from the leadership of Sidney Toledano. After over a year of drama at Dior, Raf Simons finally made his much-anticipated debut, showing his first-ever couture collection for the house toda, Long Nguyen is the co-founder and style director of Flaunt. Dakota Johnson and Emily Blunt. A darling of critics and editors, prized for his exacting silhouettes and obsession with the here-and-now, Simons succeeded John Galliano at Dior after the British designers antisemitic comments and subsequent downfall. Around the globe, the name Dior symbolizes the ultimate in elegance and refinement.. Its the clothes, its everything, the Internet.. Raf Simons: Dior on overdrive | Dazed PARIS Raf Simons is to part ways with Christian Dior, ending a fruitful three-and-a-half year collaboration that saw the fabled French house tilt in a more modernist direction. Bravo! Raf Simons Thinks the Focus on See Now, Buy Now Fashion Is BS, 16 Best Sneaker Deals from Amazon Prime Day 2021, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads. All eyes are on the catwalk, the stakes are high, and the anticipation is intense. Simons successor at Dior has yet to be identified and a search is to be conducted, according to informed industry sources. From 1997 onwards, his shows in Paris caused a sensation with his skinny tailoring, street casting and imposing runway venues such as La Grande Arche de la Dfense. Get all the top news stories and alerts straight to your inbox. Christian Dior is an extraordinary company, and it has been an immense privilege to write a few pages of this magnificent book. It is an amalgam of all of those languages that can be seen in the latest haute couture collection with a heavy Flemish accent. We were thrown into the situation. 2023 Fairchild Publishing, LLC. July 3, 2012 PARIS THE hardest thing to realize in fashion is that the future lies in the past. I had been talking to Dior about making a film [after Gallianos leave], but they were like, We dont know when the announcement [of Raf Simons] is going to be. Suddenly, it hit, and I called them and said, Should I jump on? They were like, Well, Raf Simons is not convinced yet. It was very short notice. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement and Your California Privacy Rights. "Every season I see so many things evolving at such a speed that I think certain creative people, including myself, are just not willing to do it any more.". There's this huge debate about 'Oh my God, should we sell the garments the day after the show or three days after the show or should we tweet it in this way or Instagram it in that way? In the painting, the left panel depicts Eve, presented to Adam by God in the landscape of paradise. I wasn't planning to go there for such a short period, but I was also not willing to sign up there for a long period. His thoughtful, heartfelt and inspired management will also remain as one of the most important experiences of my professional career.". Which should be abandoned? Next, of course, is a strange hell-scape of the damned, with huge lutes, terrifying hybrid creatures, and what can only be described as gigantic knife ears and thats what you get for eating giant fruit it seems. Following a three-year tenure at Calvin Klein, Simons was named co-creative director of Prada, where he has worked in partnership with Miuccia Prada since 2020. The introduction describes the Belgian designers upbringing in the small town of Neerpelt where he was starved of distractions, except for a record store that proved instrumental in finding kindred spirits. It's in their nature to collaborate with creative animals. Indigital Most Popular News Why Raf Simons Is Leaving Christian Dior - The Cut RDVK Ronald van der Kemp Couture Fall 2023. What was the struggle of making a fashion film strictly about a single seasons collection? Yet what Simons has achieved at Dior has gone beyond ideas of reincarnation and this is testament to both the designers talent and his strength of character. 819 92K views 7 years ago #DiorAndI is a tantalising 'behind-the-seams' glimpse at the making of Raf Simons' first haute couture collection for Christian Dior in 2012. Cmon. He was creative director at Jil Sander (2005-2012), Christian Dior (2012-2015), and Calvin Klein (2016-2018). Im questioning a lot, Simons said just before his last Dior show, referring to the palpable sense that the pace of fashion and the overheated runway system had reached a volatile tipping point. Before the films festival screening, Tcheng spoke to THR about zooming in on Simons first Dior collection, addressing John Gallianos departure onscreen and refitting the fashion film genre that he has helped to create. For more information read our Terms & Conditions. This Is What Marion Cotillard and Pierre Cardin Say About Raf Simons' Dior Vision. Shot in Paris shortly after Simons was. He previously went into some detail about the split, suggesting that the sheer amount and pace of the. When did you know you were going to start Dior and I? Simons wholesales his mens collection, which spans streetwear, tailoring and accessories, to some 130 doors worldwide. I want to thank Mr. Bernard Arnault for the trust he has put in me, giving me the incredible opportunity to work at this beautiful house surrounded by the most amazing team one could ever dream of. It is a decision based entirely and equally on my desire to focus on other interests in my life, including my own brand, and the passions that drive me outside my work.. Although Raf Simons has become a household name ever since people like ASAP Rocky, West, and Abloh cosigned him, Simons' clothes have been influencing streetwear and men's fashion for years.. 2022 The Business of Fashion. It's not only the clothes. Do you push yourself to continue refitting the fashion documentary genre? Three years into his tenure at Christian Dior, Raf Simons has brought new energy and modernity to the venerable French couture brand. The departure is sure to kick-start fierce speculation about who will be next in line to take onone of the most prestigious creative roles in the fashion industry. As Senior Beauty Editor, she reported and co-produced the Webby Award-nominated documentary Beat: How Drag Queens Shaped the Beauty Industry and hosted the millions-viewed video series "Beauty Haul." An enthusiastic fan of contemporary art, Simons shared the label of his fall-winter 2014 collection with Los Angeles-based artist Sterling Ruby in Paris this week for multiple openings in tandem with the Fiac art fair, some events attended by Simons. Kiernan Shipka and Dakota Johnson. All Rights Reserved. Dior creative director Raf Simons fitting a model for his first-ever couture collection in Dior and I. Raf Simons's Biography and Timeline | Vogue Oct 23, 2015 A look from Dior's fall 2012 couture collection. PARIS--There hasnt been a greater moment of anticipation in fashion in recent memory than Raf Simonss debut showing of haute couture in his new post at Christian Dior. This feature is part of a fashion week series brought to you courtesy of Dazed Digital and AnOthermag.com. Raf Simonss debut showing of haute couture. [Kvadrat and I]took more than a year for the first development. Dior has 195 boutiques worldwide. Jacobs is now focused on his ownfashion house, which LVMH hopes to ready for an initial public offering. We've been around for 20 or more years. Of course everybody's happy if it's successful, but not once have [the Kvadrat team] ever said to me, 'this is our expectation'. Currently, she is the Editor-in-Chief ofFAJO Magazine, a Canadian publication with staff in Canada, U.S. and U.K. Dior Raf Simons 2012-2015, available in English or French, will be released worldwide on May 23. We had no time to warm up and get the subjects trust, and that was the most challenging part of it, really. Overall, I think that Simons did an excellent job in dealing with the incredible responsibility placed in his hands he was certainly in the spotlight since the day he accepted the Artistic Director position at Dior and he clearly spent a lot of energy on this collection; the floral theme was skillfully intertwined throughout the show and the models floated on the catwalk in a very angelic way. Its not only the clothes. Its very different from the Diana Vreeland project, for example, in that its not archival footage; its much more alive and is capturing the moments. The Garden of Earthly Delights, a triptych painted by Hieronymus Bosch between 1590 and 1610, was the starting point forRaf Simons presentChristian DiorHauteCouturecollection for AW15. Olympia Scarry and Victoire de Castellane. ", "It is a very beautiful house and it was incredible to be able to take part in that heritage, but in the end it was just too much for me []Do I think now it was a mistake to go there? Detail of look 14, ensemble consisting of a top in embroidered pale blue faonn taffeta and trousers in pale blue taffeta,haute couture fall 2014.