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The Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams exhibition has landed at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul. Mounted by Florence Muller, former director of UFAC at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris and a curator at the Denver Art Museum, the show celebrates more than 75 years of creative effervescence, conveyed through an immersive narrative conceived by Shohei Shigematsu of architectural firm OMA. ‘We were inspired by Dior’s diverse stories to build a different scene for each theme,’ he says. ‘Dividing the space into distinct rooms allowed us to carve out rhythm and intimacy within the immensity of it, and create a single story, or experience, like a film.’
Shigematsu’s task was made easier by the lack of structural walls and columns: the Dongdaemun building, designed by Zaha Hadid, is an undulating showstopper and totally empty inside. ‘The house of Dior elevates how different creativities converge, and this exhibition really celebrates creativity, not only clothes. I also wanted to incorporate Korean culture in it. Although I am Japanese, I have always been exposed to Korean style, with its sense of ephemeral and aerial proportions. And the moon jar, naturally,’ he adds, in reference to the type of traditional white porcelain made during the Joseon dynasty (1392–1910).
This type of historic porcelain makes a welcome appearance in the exhibition courtesy of Korean artist Hyun-Joo Kim, who has interpreted the Dior Garden room as a big moon jar, filled with almost 30,000 hand-cut paper flowers, petals and branches – all white, honouring the hanji technique, and the background for floral- themed clothes. ‘I wanted to create a new dreamy garden, where materials and emotions meet: what better than entering a fantasy giant inhabitable moon mar?’ the artist says. Traditionally moon jars were used to contain flowers, among other precious goods, and Hyun-Joo incorporated both French and Korean influences here. ‘Wisteria, lilies-of-the-valley and roses – typical of a French garden – are mixed with plum blossoms, peonies and pine trees, as found in Korean courtyards and as seen painted on old porcelains,’ she says.
The reason for keeping all the hanji flowers in white was so as not to interfere visually with the colours and patterns of the looks on display, which are mounted on slim structures, resembling tree branches. ‘My team and I spent almost two months placing these flowers on the curved walls, layering them one by one, without the use of any glue,’ she adds. ‘Sustainability is very important for me. We didn’t cut any trees down; hanji is primarily made from the inner bark of the paper mulberry tree, dak in Korean, and we only used one-year-old branches, which can be replanted after the show.’
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It wouldn’t be a Dior exhibition without fabulous fashion remaining central, of course. A series of archive pictures in the entrance-way walls shows a historical excursus of the fashion house; there’s a black-and-white room in which mannequins make elongated shadows; a 2007 John Galliano creation sits with some more recent looks designed by Maria Grazia Chiuri, plus the famous Biarritz dress by Christian Dior from 1948; another room celebrates toiles, 155 in total, counting among their number some of the best-known Dior pieces, all in white. They are shown in a mirrored room, so visitors can see them from every angle and admire cuts, pleats and seams. But it is the use of contemporary art from local Korean artists that sets this show aflame.
Elsewhere, a circular room has walls hand-embroidered by artist Eva Jospin, recreating an outdoor landscape, and is dedicated to ‘Miss Dior’, the fragrance, featuring the fully embroidered dress with fringes designed by Maria Grazia Chiuri in 2017, and worn by Natalie Portman for its commercial.
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The Dior Legacy room is decorated by patchwork of chiffons, a jogakbo, the traditional Korean art of patchwork technique, used to create bojagi, which are domestic wrapping clothes: scraps of fabric are sewn together into geometric patterns, often using a triple-stitched seam called gekki. A colourful portrait of Monsieur Dior by Korean multidisciplinary artist Zadie Xa punctuates proceedings. ‘I have always been fascinated by the jogakbo technique, and how women, not artists, from poorer areas, use it to make bojagi. So I decided to use it in this painting, to frame Christian Dior’s portrait,’ says the artist. The canvas is a real patchwork, where the clothes are first washed, dried, ironed, then cut, sewn together, washed and ironed again in preparation to be painted on. ‘I chose to make Monsieur Dior smile. There’s something very Hitchcockian in other portraits I have seen of the man, so I wanted to do something different. Learning how he was so much into costumes, I wanted to portrait him in a funny and mischievous way. I added something very personal, like the lily-of-the-valley, his favourite flower, and l incorporated symbolism by including a star, barely seen, a symbol very dear to him… there is an anecdote about him stumbling on a metal coin with a star!’ Xa smiles.
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The last room, dedicated to the Dior Ball, is dominated by a contemporary take on the historic staircase of 30 Avenue Montaigne. Here, the grand, theatrical stairs have been manipulated to create a twisting display so one can see the ballgowns from different vantage points, and thus different perspectives. The sinuous shape of the staircase is in direct dialogue with a work by the artist Soo Sunny Park, who created a kinetic sculpture for the occasion. ‘My piece is not so much the object itself, it’s about an assemblage of small metallic pieces that reflect the light in the room,’ she says. ‘There is no relationship between the dresses and my piece. It is a complex installation, with its own identity, almost like one of the gowns there. I was inspired by the space and the lighting.’ It is the most conceptual part of the whole exhibition. ‘Let’s not forget that Christian Dior started working in an art gallery; art has always been at the centre of his attention,’ adds curator Florence Muller. ‘There’s always been a strong relationship between art and fashion in the maison’s history.’ Her starting point was ‘a conversation with artists’, and her experience working with Hyun-Joo Kim, Zadie Xa, Soo Sunny Park was revelatory: ‘It makes sense to have a dialogue with the local art scene of the city,’ Muller says. ‘Seoul is extremely important for Dior now, with its arts, music and pop culture, which continue to become more internationally acclaimed.’
‘Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams’ runs until 13 July 2025 at Dongdaemun Design Plaza, Seoul
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