Christian Dior facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Christian Dior
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Dior in 1954
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| Born | 21 January 1905 Granville, France
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| Died | 24 October 1957 (aged 52) Montecatini Terme, Tuscany, Italy
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| Resting place | Cimetière de Callian, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France |
| Alma mater | Sciences Po |
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Christian Dior |
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Christian Ernest Dior (born January 21, 1905 – died October 24, 1957) was a famous French fashion designer. He is best known for starting one of the world's top fashion houses, Christian Dior SE. This company is now part of LVMH. His fashion designs became famous all over the world very quickly.
Dior used his artistic talents to design clothes for important people. He helped keep the fashion industry going during World War II. After the war, he opened his own fashion house. His first collection, called the "New Look", changed women's fashion. It also helped make Paris the center of the fashion world again.
Christian Dior won many awards for his costume designs. When he passed away in 1957, many famous people honored his life and work.
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Early Life and Art
Christian Dior was born in Granville, a town by the sea in Normandy, France. He was the second of five children. His father, Maurice Dior, was a rich fertilizer maker. His mother was Madeleine Martin. Christian had four siblings: Raymond, Jacqueline, Bernard, and Catherine Dior. When he was about five, his family moved to Paris. But they still spent summer holidays on the Normandy coast.
Dior's family wanted him to become a diplomat, which is someone who represents their country. But Christian loved art and wanted to work in that field. To earn money, he sold his fashion sketches outside his house. In 1928, Dior left school. His father gave him money to open a small art gallery with a friend. They sold art by famous artists like Pablo Picasso.
The gallery closed three years later. This happened after his mother and brother died. Also, his family faced money problems during the Great Depression. His father lost control of the family business.
Starting in Fashion
From 1937, Dior worked for the fashion designer Robert Piguet. Here, he got to design for three of Piguet's collections. Dior later said that Piguet taught him that true elegance comes from simplicity. One of his first designs for Piguet was a day dress called "Cafe Anglais." It had a short, full skirt and was very popular.
While at Piguet, Dior worked with Pierre Balmain. Later, Marc Bohan took over as the main designer. Bohan would later become the head designer for Christian Dior Paris. Dior left Piguet when he had to join the military.
In 1942, after leaving the army, Dior joined the fashion house of Lucien Lelong. He and Balmain were the main designers there. During World War II, Dior worked for Lelong. Lelong tried to keep the French fashion industry alive during the war. Dior's sister, Catherine, was a brave member of the French Resistance. Later, Christian Dior named his first perfume, Miss Dior, in her honor.
The Dior Fashion House
The famous "Bar Suit" on display at the Denver Art Museum (2019).
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In 1946, Marcel Boussac, a very rich businessman, asked Dior to design for an old fashion house. But Dior wanted to start fresh with his own name. So, on December 16, 1946, with Boussac's help, Dior opened his own fashion house.
His first collection was shown on February 12, 1947. It was called Corolle, which means "flower petals." Carmel Snow, an editor for Harper's Bazaar magazine, called it the "New Look."
The "New Look" was not entirely new, but it made older styles popular again. It was inspired by the Edwardian period (early 1900s). Dior's designs were much fuller and used more fabric than the styles from World War II. During the war, fabric was limited.
Dior was very good at creating different shapes for his clothes. He once said, "I have designed flower women." His designs often used stiff fabrics, tight tops like bodices, hip padding, and corsets to make the waist look tiny. Many petticoats made the skirts flare out, giving models a very curvy shape.
At first, some women protested because the designs covered their legs. They were used to showing their legs because of wartime fabric limits. Some people also complained about how much fabric was used in one dress. But as the war shortages ended, people stopped protesting.
The "New Look" completely changed women's fashion. It also made Paris the most important fashion city again after World War II. Dior became a major influence in fashion for the next ten years. Each season, he would introduce a new "line" or collection. Some famous lines included the H-Line and A-Line.
In 1955, a 19-year-old named Yves Saint Laurent became Dior's design assistant. Christian Dior later told Yves Saint Laurent's mother that he had chosen Saint Laurent to take over his fashion house. This surprised her because Dior was only 52 at the time.
Death
Christian Dior died suddenly from a heart attack. This happened while he was on vacation in Montecatini Terme, Italy, on October 24, 1957.
Awards and Honors
Dior was nominated for an Academy Award in 1955. This was for Best Costume Design in black and white for the film Terminal Station (1953). He was also nominated for a BAFTA award in 1967. This was for Best British Costume (Colour) for the film Arabesque (1966). In 1986, he was nominated for a Cesar Award for Best Costume Design for the 1985 film Bras de fer.
See also
- Château de La Colle Noire
