Text: Cornelia Liese
Translation and summary: Paul Embleton
Christian
Dior demonstrates the new short skirt length
Linie Vivante, Autumn/Winter 1953/54; Silver
gelatine print
Sixty years ago, Christian Dior launched his first collection. In
doing so he not only cast aside post-war austerity but
revolutionised the fashion industry. Berlin's Kunstbibliothek is
marking this event with a special exhibition that focuses on Dior's
links to Germany and showcases 20 original Dior models from the
years 1947 to 1957. Other exhibits include drawings by René Gruau
and Walter Voigt, some 40 fashion photographs by F. C. Gundlach,
Walde Huth and Willy Maywald as well as accessories. The exhibition
also turns the spotlight on Dior’s relationship with Germany –
the huge media response here to Dior’s fashions, Dior's celebrity
status and the production licences awarded to German companies.
Elegance, beauty and luxury
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Walter Voigt |
Centre stage at the exhibition is given to two large display
cabinets containing 10 elegant Haute Couture outfits from Dior’s
celebrated "New Look". His 1947/48 tapered coat-dress in
black, according to Dior the most elegant of colours, encapsulates
this look. Unmistakably Dior, it is characterised by an hourglass
silhouette, narrow, rounded shoulders, a tapered waist and long,
voluminous skirts. The amount of material used in this dress is
unknown, but for some of his dresses, which weighed in at up to 30
Kilograms, Dior is known to have used more than 40 metres of fabric.
Other exhibits clearly illustrate the various symmetry that Dior
used to transform the female form into an hourglass, Lily of the
Valley, 8, H, A, or Y shapes – the fringe always placed demurely
between knee and ankle regardless of shape. Amongst the dresses on
display from the Marlene Dietrich collection, is the famous 'Black
Swan' evening dress from the Autumn/Winter Collection of 1949/50, as
well as "Saphire", a low-cut, split skirt, three-piece
evening dress from the 1948 Zigzag Line in which the film star
appeared at the 1951 Oscars. Other Dietrich dresses, this time from
Elizabeth Parke Firestone's collection, include an exuberant evening
dress with flower motif from the 1953 Tulip Line, as well as a blue
rendition of the 1949 "Acasias" design worn by
Dietrich in Alfred Hitchcock's 1950 film "Stage Fright".
Cultural relations, image and licensing
| Parure with dog collar and ear clips by
Christian Dior, Autumn 1955 Produced by Henkel & Grosse in Pforzheim; Germany Silver gelatine vintage print Photo: Willy Maywald Collection: Ursula und Bert Grosse, Birkenfeld, Germany |
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True to his motto that "fashion begins
with the tips of the hair and ends at the tip of the toes",
Dior pursued a holistic approach to fashion and designed numerous
accessories to go with his clothing. Objects on display, many of
which were aimed at a less affluent clientele, include stockings,
handbags, hats and shoes as well as 24 items of fashion garniture
produced in Germany between 1955 and 1957. As Dior pointed out in
his ABC of Fashion, garniture and accessories often gave clothes
that much needed personal touch.
Having first started producing accessories himself, Dior soon issued
production licences to various manufacturers. In Germany these
included the Pforzheim-based jewellery manufacturer Henkel &
Grosse, the stocking makers Werner Uhlmann in Lippstadt and the
Goldpfeil, an Offenbach-based company. By 1955 Dior had issued 20
production licences worldwide; by 1963 this figure had risen to 65.
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Star model Lucky in a Dior dress, Paris 1955 |
Another
exhibit shows grainy newsreel film footage of fashion shows held
between 1943 and 1953 in the cities of Essen, Düsseldorf, Hamburg,
Munich and Bad Godesberg. These shows not only generated huge media
interest but, fronted by high-ranking French and German diplomats,
helped to re-foster Franco-German cultural relations after the
Second World War. These events likewise provided a massive boost to
Dior's image and won him countless new customers in Germany.
Christian Dior, who died 50 years ago this October, was first and
foremost a skilful entrepreneur who was awarded a Design Oscar in
1947. That year also saw him launch "Miss Dior", the first
perfume to carry the Dior label and one which was soon followed by
the Diorama and Diorissima fragrances. Today the company's
fragrance business accounts for the lion's share of its revenues.
Some two years later, in 1949, his fledgling fashion business
already boasted a 75 percent share of the French fashion market, and
saw total employee numbers rise to 600 from around 20 in 1946.
Branches were opened in New York, London and Caracas that same year.
Service:
www.smb.museum/kb
Location:
Kunstbibliothek, Kulturforum Potsdamer Platz
Entrance: Matthäikirchplatz 8.
Opening times: Tues, Wed, Thurs, Fri 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sat, Sun 11
a.m. to 6 p.m.
Information: +49(0)30 - 266-2951
Guided tours on Sundays at 3 p. m.
Public Transportation: U-Bahn U2 und S-Bahn S1, S2, S25 (Potsdamer
Platz), Bus M29 (Potsdamer Brücke); 200, 347 (Philharmonie)
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Email to: Leserbriefe@modekultur.info
March 2007
