On Tuesday, the first posts dedicated to the collection appeared on the Dior and Jonathan Anderson profiles—a video with this caption: Outside the legendary Dior atelier at 30 Avenue Montaigne, a plaque honours the couturier Paul Poiret—an unexpected dialogue that invites further exploration. From this stems the idea that the new Dior man should be seen from an intimate and personal perspective: the personality portrayed appears authentic and sincere, attentive to self-awareness, discovery, and knowledge. Poiret is considered one of the fathers of modern fashion, remembered for introducing more fluid silhouettes, infusing his creations with a strongly artistic and Orientalist spirit, and for elevating the designer to a true creative and cultural figure. All elements that perfectly encompass Jonathan Anderson’s abilities, who did not disappoint the expectations set by the images revealed before the show. The tailoring of the collection is precise, the details striking and exuberant, and the line between masculine and feminine is blurred. The défilé feels almost like a tentative declaration of escape, a portrait of characters exploring questions of identity—a collection of hazy thoughts seeking new meaning. The aim is to find a way out and greater freedom, first through getting lost and then through finding oneself again.
“For me, it’s another character study. It’s about personal style, but at the same time about the idea of eccentricity—what that kind of eccentricity is if you ignore money in terms of aristocracy. (…) Ultimately, the way I work is by collecting experiences throughout the process and then kind of infiltrating them into the work.”
The collection does not tiptoe in; on the contrary, it enters with intensity and disarming presence. The first looks are tight-cut denim trousers worn low on the waist, paired with shimmering monochromatic sequin tank tops. Thus is introduced the protagonist of Dior’s aristo-youth. Knitwear peeks out from beneath long knee-length dresses; formal suits are reimagined, worn either bare-chested or over minimalist shirts. The detail everyone had been waiting for appears: collars resembling delicate ruffs, tied in contrasting knots on many of the looks. The exploration of fabrics seems endless—they are layered, combined, contrasted, and constructed with voluminous abundance. Tailored and sporty jackets extend at the back, taking on the elegance of finely crafted tailcoats. Lengths that might seem out of place in the male wardrobe reappear in floor-skimming skirts and soft, fluttering capes. The latter are echoed on the shoulders as wide panels adorned with prints inspired by the Orient, enriched with damask applications in gold and red. Maxi faux-fur cuffs extend from the sleeves of wool coats. This maximalism contrasts with the reduced and streamlined proportions of some of the looks, as if to convey the confusion and inadequacy experienced by the man walking the runway. The palette is full and saturated, yet at the same time dusty, soft, and grounded.
The notes of Mk.gee’s Alesis open and close the défilé, like a circle of existence that gathers all lived experiences and transforms them into baggage. In this men’s collection, the creative director explores a sense of disorientation typical of contemporary society—an inner odyssey between being and non-being. Jonathan Anderson’s vision is likewise an introspective and reflective journey through the codes of the Maison: a pursuit of measured, sartorial details, of fundamental quality and precision, and an experimentation with new forms, lines, and silhouettes, as well as with contrasts and colours. The visual narrative that has characterised Christian Dior’s history for centuries remains present; the runway becomes an immersive world to travel through, to know and to discover. Traditional categories are deconstructed and challenged by the creative director’s latest work, whose recognisable language once again filters Dior Homme through a fresh, contemporary sensibility.
