Dior Enchanting Gardens

Christian Dior had a special love for gardens and all things floral, blossomed during his childhood spent at the family home in Granville and developed over his entire lifetime. Flowers have accompanied the couturier as a significant source of inspiration for his designs since the inception of the New Look, placed beneath the iconic corolla symbol, and the creation of his first fragrance, Miss Dior. Gardens have been special havens in his private life, and gardening a lasting personal passion. Accompanying the exhibition at the Musee Christian Dior in Granville, this volume explores how flowers and gardens have been an essential element and influence for all the creatives at the helm of the House, in both couture and perfumes. Chapters present the gardens of Christian Dior s private residences from his childhood home Les Rhumbs, in Granville, to his chateau of La Colle Noire, in Montauroux, via the Moulin-du-Coudret, in Milly-la-Foret as his personal playgrounds for expressing his fondness for gardening; revisit the historical fragrances of the House; showcase a collection of portraits of dresses that reveal the floral inspiration in the collections from Christian Dior s era to today, with a special focus on the most emblematic designs by all creative directors of the House, from the early flowery vision of femininity to contemporary floral-inspired designs. Rare archival materials are featured alongside images of campaigns and exhibitions by prominent photographers such as Henry Clarke, Patrick Demarchelier, Brigitte Niedermair, or Paolo Roversi, illustrating a decades-long unmistakable floral signature.