Inspired by the emblematic personality of the Italian feminist art of the 60s and 70s, Maria Grazia Chiuri , creative director of the French fashion house Dior , in her autumn-winter 2020-2021 collection of pret a bring her reflection on the connections between body, feminism and femininity. From the images of her adolescence, the designer traces an initiatory path towards assertiveness, through art and fashion.
Therefore, paintings and polka dots, long and pleated skirts, black and white, fringes and pleats, shape each garment, in the name of liberation and freedom. Designed by the artist Claire Fontaine, the scenography of the parade, singing the words "I say I" - translated from the poster "Io dico Io" by the art critic and feminist Carla Lonzi, the catwalk was covered by pages of the newspaper Le Monde , a new version of the Newsfloor, entitled Le Monde pixélisé, after a photograph by Henri Capisse taken by Robert Capa in 1949. Suspended bright sentences, in neon colors. "It doesn't matter where we start ..." they are suspended in the air.
For her ready-to-wear autumn-winter 2020-2021 collection, Maria Grazia Chiuri draws an atlas of emotions through her teenage diary. Two photos of his mother. The images reappear, including those of the actresses who represented a model for the customers of the Dior laboratory. The couture of his mother, just like the art director who used fashion to assert himself, rebel, tell others how he wanted to be looked at. Then came the photographs of the past which she re-appropriated in today's vision: the studio of Germana Marucelli in Milan, designed by the artist, or that of Mila Schön, or Ugo Mulas, and finally the portraits of Carla Accardi.
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Hence the new Dior fashion dictionary: jeans in the colors of the tiles that Mr. Dior loved. "I really like the tiles that give a young tone, bring a touch of elegant and relaxed fantasy. There is also the sailor jacket and pleated skirts. Small collars with laces. Black and white. All this is at the center of a perfectly balanced collection. A polka dot scarf, found in the Dior archives, becomes the focal point of clothes of different lengths, exploring the infinite possibilities of this print. Without forgetting the fringes, a moving ornament on the long skirts. The sweater is declined according to all the essential elements of a wardrobe: sweaters, jackets, skirts, trousers. The space of the show is an opportunity to involve the exhibition that Claire Fontaine exhibited at the National Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art in Rome, which now houses the archives of Carla Lonzi, charismatic figure, art critic before engaging in the feminist revolt. "Io Dico Io - I Say I 4", is the title of the exhibition supported by Dior dedicated to Italian female art becomes the starting point of a series of phrases similar to posters. Saying these words in English - "I Say I" - as soon as you enter the parade, allows it to bring out the story of a powerful assertiveness. They are the symbol of a joyful singularity, as well as a creative and collective way to face the multiple facets of female subjectivity. "Io Dico Io - I Say I" ("Je dis je" in French) is the title of the exhibition to be held from 23 March to 21 June 2020 at the National Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art in Rome.
