Dior Looks East For Autumn 2021

Is Kim Jones the most influential person in fashion? His time at Dior, which began with a much anticipated and widely lauded S/S19 collection, has only seemed to affirm his creativity, his cultural knowledge and his capacity to read the zeitgeist better than almost anyone else. In a macro sense, his seasonal collections have set the tone of global menswear for the past few years, but he has also presided over internet-breaking collaborations, created the ultimate hype trainer and established Dior as a genuinely cool luxury brand. He also found the the time to become artistic director of womenswear and couture at Fendi...

Yannis Vlamos

Dior Fall 2021

Today offers the next instalment of the story. The collection is labelled as 'Fall', but it's not the Autumn/Winter 2021 collection proper, it's actually a pre-collection which will land sometime in the Spring. (Imagine the Spring! What a joy that will be!!)

Pre-collections can often be amalgamations of collections previous and hints at what's to come, and Fall 2021 is littered with Jonesian hallmarks. There are harness suits and saddle bags, of course (they are the icons of the new Dior), but the dusty blue and beige tailoring from Autumn/Winter 2020 reappears in a meeker, less Dickensian format. Knitwear woven to feature oversized faces features once again as it did in Spring/Summer 2021 (which, to be fair, isn't really on sale yet). And the intricate, elegant detailing (pearls, nifty hardware, odd frills etc.) that Jones is so celebrated for continues apace.

Yannis Vlamos

Dior Fall 2021

But Fall 2021 has its own concept. The thing that struck me most was how boldly Nineties it all is. From the hair – tight Bjork buns and wet curtains – to the berets, the translucent sunglasses; the general palette of muted greys, reds, blues and beige, punctuated by Pete-Tong pinks, and traffic cone orange.

And then there are the wavy prints and patterns, created in partnership with Kenny Scharf. The American artist came to prominence in the 1980s via his graffiti work, and his aesthetic is decidedly trippy - all interweaving, drooping, smiley faces and cartoon menace - but more rave culture than Woodstock. And it offsets a relatively muted collection of soft tailoring and serious outerwear - it all feels quite Cyberpunk 2077.

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But Fall 2021 is perhaps more Chinese than French, American or British. If you look closely, the characters are interpretations of signs from the Chinese Zodiac, and the show notes explain that the collection features traditional Chinese construction techniques and materials, calling the collection a "celebration of Chinese craftsmanship and excellence".

In a recent interview for Esquire, Jones said “I’m a collaborator in every sense, every day,” and this collection proves his point. His recent career has been partly defined by the luminaries he has brought in to help create new, rich, interesting collections every few months. From jewellery designer Yoon Ahn to milliner Stephen Jones to surfwear icon Shawn Stussy to Ghanaian artist Amoako Boafo, it is a series of alarming talent. Fall 2021 offers the same, and who know what teams Jones will assemble in the future.