Dior selects Villa Albani as the location of the next cruise show

Dior has selected Villa Albani Torlonia in Rome as the location of his next cruise show: the last historical site chosen by its creative director, Maria Grazia Chiuri, for a parade.

The show will be organized on Tuesday, May 27, within the vast architecture complex of the 18th century built to house the art collection of Cardinal Alessandro Albani, which contains a remarkable set of old Greek and Roman statues.

The famous geometric gardens of Villa Albani Torlonia offer views of the mountains of Sabine and the Alban hills, which makes it a privileged destination during the Great Tour, the famous cultural itinerary of the young gentlemen of the 18th and 19th century in search of learning.

Last year, Chiuri selected Drummond's castle, whose gardens are often called Versailles de Scotia, as the place for the Punk Punk Cruise Collection of Dior Celtic Punk.

Villa Albani Torlonia has been owned by the Torlonia family since 1866, and have preserved it intact in the 21st century. Access to the town can only be achieved by previous appointment, and photography is prohibited, which makes the choice of location a scoop for Dior. One of the most outstanding princely clans in Rome, the Torlonia family acquired a great fortune in the nineteenth century by administering the Vatican's finances.

“This extraordinary villa, a secret treasure of ancient wonders, exceptionally, and for the first time, will open its doors to organize the Dior 2026 Cruise Show. The elegance of the silhouettes dreamed by Maria Grazia Chiuri will shine within this outstanding cradle of neoclassicism,” Dior said in a statement.

Chiuri was born in Rome and grew in the bourgeois neighborhood of Parioli, near Villa Albani Torlonia, which is in Via Salaria. Before joining Dior in 2016, Chiuri spent 17 years working in Rome for two famous local brands: Fendi and Valentino, where she was a joint creative director.

This marks his first parade in Rome, although earlier this year he presented an exhibition on women's traveling women within the Vatican Apostolic Library.

The news occurs in the middle of immense speculation that this may be the final show of Maria Grazia for Dior. Last month, Bernard Arnault, president and CEO of LVMH, owner of Dior, announced that Jonathan Anderson, former creative director of Loewe, another LVMH brand, has happened to Kim Jones as Dior male clothing designer. Anderson will present your first show for the house in June.

This is expected to be the first step before Anderson will receive a complete creative control of Dior, one of the most famous fashion brands, founded for the first time in 1946 in Paris by Christian Dior.