Jonathan Anderson unveiled his first haute couture collection for Dior on January 26 at the Musée Rodin in Paris. The Northern Irish designer, who revived the Spanish house Loewe, now commands menswear, womenswear, and couture for Dior simultaneously—an arrangement the luxury house has not asked of a single designer in the modern era. A suspended ceiling hung with flowers released a single bloom to the floor as Rihanna took her seat, signaling the tone for designs that balanced spectacle with precision.
Anderson’s three-fold appointment marks a significant moment for Dior, one of the main engines of the luxury conglomerate LVMH. The collection, titled “nature in motion,” treated technique as living knowledge rather than museum display, with the designer reworking historical fragments into contemporary silhouettes that honored the house’s legacy without relying on nostalgia.
Anderson Takes the Helm at Dior’s Haute Couture Division
Jonathan Anderson has assumed a role at Dior that the house has not asked of any single designer in the modern era: commanding menswear, womenswear, and haute couture simultaneously. His first collection in that position, unveiled on January 26 at the Musée Rodin during Paris Couture Week, announced the Northern Irish designer’s approach with a collection titled “nature in motion.”
Dior is one of the main engines of the luxury conglomerate LVMH, and haute couture is where a house shows its power. The collection treated technique as living knowledge rather than museum display, with Anderson reworking fragments of Dior’s past into silhouettes meant to feel contemporary rather than historically referential.
The show’s opening set the stage: a suspended ceiling hung with flowers released a single bloom to the floor as Rihanna took her seat. It was an image of beauty under pressure—a fitting introduction to a collection built on the balance between spectacle and precision.
Design: Discipline and Wit
The palette was disciplined—blacks, whites, and ecru—then punctuated by flashes of color and texture. Lines were clean. Draping softened, then snapped back into structure in the manner of archetypal haute couture.
Among the collection’s most distinctive elements were pannier gowns reimagined as fanny pack silhouettes, a characteristic Anderson move: taking something precious, tilting it, and making the result feel both witty and precise. Hydrangea-like blooms appeared as oversized earrings throughout, a nod to the cyclamen that John Galliano, Dior’s former creative director, had given to Anderson.
An Asian-style silk coat, strict and elegant, was cut through with black lapels that felt simultaneously archival and modern. Flowers cut from light silks, dense embroideries, and layered chiffon and organza appeared throughout, with micro patterns expanded into macro silhouettes.
The show carried a faint echo of Galliano-style spectacle, filtered through Anderson’s cooler, more controlled hand. Guests at the show included French first lady Brigitte Macron, Lauren Sánchez Bezos, Rihanna, and Parker Posey.
Spectacle Across the Houses
For all the ambition of the accomplished show, it occasionally felt like a set of strong parts still settling into a single, defining line. Haute couture, when it works, does more than impress; it convinces. Anderson’s debut achieved both—but not always at the same moment. The ceiling garden promised one complete world. At times, the clothes felt like a designer still deciding where that garden begins and ends.
Daniel Roseberry brought a dramatically different vision to Schiaparelli’s couture collection, shown at the Petit Palais. His collection, framed as a push from “thinking” to “feeling,” featured sharp-shouldered jackets with gravity-defying hips, bustiers molded like armor, and skirts that bloomed in smoky tulle.
Technique did the heavy lifting: bas-relief lace bouquets mounted on tulle, trompe l’oeil animal tails, and showpieces that took thousands of hours—including one with 65,000 handset feathers. The keyhole motif, a Schiaparelli signature, returned as jewelry and hardware, a wink at mystery amid the meticulousness.
Where Dior spoke through flowers, Schiaparelli spoke through plumes and creature motifs—bird heads, scorpion tails, snake teeth—transforming lingerie into couture theater. Attendees included Lauren Sánchez Bezos, Jeff Bezos, and Demi Moore.
At its best, Schiaparelli’s collection balanced menace with beauty. At other moments, the exuberance tipped into costume, a victim of its own enthusiasm. As an opening statement for couture week, the two houses made their positions clear: precision and spectacle remain central to the form, even as designers approach them from distinct angles.
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