British actress Maisie Williams said designer Christian Dior's legacy is rooted in his “special” ability to make women feel “incredibly feminine” and “tough” at the same time.
The 26-year-old, who made her acting debut in 2011 as Arya Stark in the medieval fantasy series Game Of Thrones, stars in the new Apple TV+ biographical series, The New Look.
It tells the story of how “fashion icon of hope” Dior (played by Australian actor Ben Mendelsohn, known for Rogue One and The Dark Knight Rises) and his rival Coco Chanel (played by French actress Juliette Binoche, who has appeared in more than 60 films) navigated a Nazi-occupied Paris during World War II and shaped modern fashion alongside his contemporaries Pierre Balmain (Thomas Poitevin) and Cristóbal Balenciaga.
“The legacy of the brand is [all about] how women feel. I think Dior wanted women to feel wonderful again, [after] It was such a dark time,” Williams, who plays Dior’s sister Catherine, said during an interview with the PA news agency.
“Wearing Dior clothes, even today, there's nothing like the structure and construction that these dresses have and it's incredibly feminine, but it's tough. And it dares to be both. “I think it's rare to feel that way with clothes and it's something so special and unique for the Dior brand.”
It was no secret that the French fashion designer admired his sister Catherine Dior, a former French farmer and French Resistance fighter during World War II. But when she was one of 26 people arrested in July 1944 and tortured by the Gestapo (Nazi Germany's official secret police), Dior channeled some of the simple values and mantras his sister lived by, including “Love Life “, which reflects the extravagance. and simplicity of its designs, and which are still part of the brand's legacy today.
“I think it's that connection between family, those bonds are so strong, and it's beautiful to see how that influence has shaped the brand forever,” Williams said.
“I would say Catherine was probably one of the only members of Christian's family who really saw him for who he was and supported him for that. And I think that's [what also] It made their relationship so strong.
“During the war, with everything that happened to Catherine, I think Christian felt a real responsibility to care for her. And I think that when she couldn't take it anymore, it was so painful for him that he had no choice but to transfer all that pain to his work.
“She was the most important figure for him, both she and his mother. And that's why I think that when designing women's clothing and designing scents, [Miss Dior – which launched in 1947 and was named after Catherine Dior]It seemed right that the woman he had in mind was his little sister.”
When Dior died in 1957 at the age of 52, Catherine Dior, who has not said much about her time in the interrogation camps and in her homes, helped preserve her brother's legacy and became honorary president of the Christian Museum. -Dior from 1999 until his death. her in 2008, at 90 years old.
Before Dior formally launched his fashion house and presented his groundbreaking first collection, the post-war “New Look” in 1947, which celebrated ultra-femininity and opulence in women's fashion through coats and dresses with full skirts that emphasized the curves and To accentuate his legs, the French designer worked with Balmain for his former friend, mentor, boss and French couturier, Lucien Lelong.
Lelong didn't exactly design everything with his own hands, but his vision and creativity not only championed high-society elegance but also some of the most exceptional designers he worked with.
And like other fashion houses trying to stay afloat during the war, such as Jeanne Lanvin and Nina Ricci, the couple reluctantly designed dresses for the wives of Nazi officers and French collaborators.
“I don't think you can teach talent,” said Death Of A Salesman and Red star John Malkovich, who plays Lucien Lelong in The New Look.
“Christian Dior was hypersensitive. So that's something you try to improve, you try to protect its quality. He was so worried and so traumatized by what he happened to his little sister, [Catherine Dior]. And in the end, Dior had to take the path into its own hands and I think Lelong accepted that.”
Todd A. Kessler, one of the show's executive producers, added: “His talent is being able to express himself through design, sketching and creating, which saved everyone's lives and helped inform and inspire people. [during the Second World War and subsequent Nazi occupation of France]. I mean, Dior opened 77 years ago and it still has an impact on all of us today.”
The Dior brand sought to redefine femininity after a long period of austerity, and thanks to the monumental success of its “New Look” collection, particularly the Bar suit, which featured a notched collar, the House of Dior opened its doors in the 30 on Avenue Montaigne in Paris and continued to expand with iconic innovations, such as the “H-Line” and “A-Line” silhouettes, glasses, shoes, bags and perfumes such as “J'adore”, which has sustained its legacy on the scene. of fashion.
Other coveted shoe and bag designs, which have been seen on the likes of Princess Diana and Bella Hadid, include the Lady Dior bag from 1994, the It Girl Saddle bag from 1999 and the J'Adior pumps.
Lorenzo di Bonaventura, also an executive producer of the show, highlighted how Dior was also inspired by nature: “It's delicious but also, in a way, it has that earthiness that people were desperate for. We have a modern equivalent which is Covid-19. You missed going to your favorite restaurant and all the different things about the joy of life. Dior brought joy.”
Malkovich added: “I believe that creation is an antidote to many ills in the world. It is not a cure, but an antidote against violence, chaos, barbarism, destruction, and to create and remind people who do not believe for Catholic reasons (even because they are not interested) of the beauty that human beings have. beings can do. I think it is a very powerful medicine.”
The New Look arrives on Apple TV+ on February 14.
