Art was the meaning of life for Christian Dior. He gave up a political career for the sake of what he loved. The life of Christian Dior, the founder of the famous Haute Couture House, was short. His thriving work as a fashion designer lasted only 10 years, but thanks to his latest collections, Paris was able to regain the title of "world capital of fashion".
Childhood and early years of Christian Dior
Christian Dior was born on January 21, 1905 in Granville, into a bourgeois family with Norman roots, which he was proud of throughout his life. His father was the heir and owner of several factories for the production of fertilizers and chemicals. From an early age, the boy was instilled in the taste of exquisite things, which was largely influenced by his mother. Dior was the second of five children. At the age of five, the parents decided to move to Paris, but they have returned to Normandy more than once.
The boy's parents expressed a desire for their son to connect his life with political activities and the career of a diplomat. But Christian showed artistic flair by drawing sketches and selling them for 10 cents. The father resigned himself to the choice of his son and even allowed him to leave school and open a small gallery for an exhibition of works by Christian and his friend. Christian also took an interest in architecture.
Dior met the artist Christian Berard. Finding his work inspiring, he hung pictures in his room.
The Dior family soon suffered a series of misfortunes. First, Christian's brother fell ill with a mental disorder, from which he died, and then his beloved mother died from the grief of loss. Then in 1931, Christian's father put all his savings into real estate, but suffered a complete financial ruin in a few days. The gallery also had to be closed.
In 1934-35 he fell ill with tuberculosis. Christian was in need of money. His friends helped him out by paying for one of the health resorts to restore his health. After his recovery, Christian returned to work on drawing sketches for one of the fashion magazines.
Christian Dior's career
In 1938, Robert Piquet invited him to work as a fashion designer, to which Christian happily agreed. But in 1940, Dior joined the ranks of the French army. Two years later, he met Pierre Balmain, a famous French fashion designer who supported the aspiring couturier.
Christian Dior did not have the necessary technical education, so designers usually learn the complete process from sketching to tailoring. Dior, on the other hand, simply had his own vision, allowing him to generate ideas that were embodied in reality by the workers of the atelier.
Christian Dior's first success in the fashion world
At 42, Dior finally had his own fashion house. The entrepreneur of textile products Marcel Boussac helped him a lot in this. It was a very small building, which was undergoing renovations. Christian Dior surrounded himself with quality staff and reliable employees, whose total number reached 85. They inspired him with their enthusiasm and supported him in every possible way. On February 12, 1947, Christian Dior's Fashion House was opened, but it happened in some confusion: just before the opening, I urgently had to run to buy an iron.
Cristina Dior's style made a splash in the fashion world. In the post-war years, there was an economic crisis in France, which was reflected in the shortage of many goods, including good fabric. However, Dior made it possible to introduce skirts into fashion, which became 30 cm longer, which means that almost 30% more fabric was used for sewing skirts, and at prices they were more expensive. In his sketches, Dior combined two styles: nostalgic, feminine pre-war and modern, full of something new and unusual. Christian Dior was an opponent of the revolution in the fashion world, on the contrary, he adhered to traditional views against the backdrop of new trends of the time.
On the day of his first show of the fashion collection, Dior was very excited. He was worried about how the invited guests and the world in general would perceive his work. However, the couturier's concern was not justified: after the release of the first fashion model, the audience greeted the model with applause.
They decided to transfer the success from the show of the collections to a commercial one, America was chosen as the main market for selling clothes. Every six months, Dior's fashion collection changed. He had a very demanding character in his work, pointing out any shortcomings or remarks with his cane.
"When I create dresses, they are objects of my architecture, designed to glorify the proportions of the female body," said Dior.
Christian Dior considered the perfume to be the perfect completion to the ideal feminine image. Therefore, along with work on collections, he devoted a lot of time to release his own perfume line.
In the spring of 1954, the Fashion House occupied 5 buildings with 28 workshops and a staff of 1000 people. 8 branches and 6 subsidiaries operated under the Christian Dior brand in different parts of the world.
The personality of Christian Dior
Christian Dior was not a public person, on the contrary, he fenced himself off from many and preferred solitude. He called himself a humble, "reserved gentleman." Dior was not a leader by nature. He passed the show of the collections under the guidance of a confidant - Madame Susan Lüling. Christian did not move in bohemian circles and avoided the attention of the press. After the first proceeds, he went to look for a suitable home that would suit him. It was not a castle or a villa, on the contrary, it was an ordinary country house, created for living in the field, away from neighbors.
Nothing is known about the personal life of the famous couturier. Christian Dior has never married and has never been seen in romantic relationships with women. According to rumors, Dior could be gay, but there is no confirmation of this either.
The famous fashion designer Christian Dior died on the night of October 24, 1957 in Italy from a heart attack. More than 2,500 people attended the funeral.
