Dior: Takeaways from Jonathan Anderson’s debut women’s show

The Dior challenge for Jonathan Anderson

Christian Dior, Yves Saint Laurent, Marc Bohan, John Galliano, Raf Simons, Maria Grazia Chiuri… Each one of these major figures has left their mark on fashion. Especially on the history of the house of Dior since its creation in 1946.

It’s no small feat to step into their shoes, even for someone like Jonathan Anderson. Credited with revitalizing Loewe, the brillant Irish designer also heads his own label, JW Anderson, and is part of a new generation of artistic directors in tune with the zeitgeist and loved by both industry insiders and the general public.

Appointed head of all collections of the iconic French house in June 2025, he has since been at the center of every conversation. Would he inject his playful imagination into Dior’s classic, yet occasionally subversive heritage? Or would he be overwhelmed by the weight of the house’s heritage?

Those questions were partially answered by Jonathan Anderson last June, when the designer unveiled a well-received menswear debut show. A demonstration of mastery of the codes of the house, tinged with a desire to leave his own mark.

But Dior’s real stronghold lies in womenswear, scrutinised and worn by the world’s biggest celebrities. Over the past few weeks, the creative director had already begun laying the foundation by naming Greta Lee, Mikey Madison, and Mia Goth as ambassadors. He also dressed a few actresses, like Anya Taylor-Joy or Alba Rohrwacher at the Venice Film Festival, in new designs from this upcoming collection.

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“Do You Dare Enter the House of Dior?”

The Dior Spring/Summer 2026 womenswear show was undeniably one of the most anticipated events of the Paris Fashion Week. Everyone was eager to discover the full extent of Jonathan Anderson’s vision, which appeared to strongly differ from the aesthetic crafted by Maria Grazia Chiuri over the past decade…

A huge responsibility that the Irish designer seemed to acknowledge through the show’s scenography. It featured a massive inverted pyramid hanging from the ceiling, its tip nearly touching the lid of a half-open Dior box. That box, containing the rich history of the house, mirrored the short film projected onto the pyramid at the start of the show.

On these screens, guests were shown a wealth of archival footage, including runways, fittings, and advertising campaigns spanning over half a century. The video opened with a haunting soundtrack and a single sentence: “Do you dare enter the house of Dior?” A question Jonathan Anderson has no doubt asked himself and one that he used to shape this Spring/Summer 2026 collection, filled with references to Dior’s history…

L’héritage des chapeaux Dior

Aside from for the occasional beret, bucket hat or cap scattered here and there, hats were largely absent from most of Maria Grazia Chiuri‘s collections. Yet, they are an integral part of the house’s legacy. Even before launching his own brand, Christian Dior had made a name for himself in Paris by selling his hat sketches to milliners. So, when he turned to couture in 1947, it was only natural that headwear became a feature of his silhouettes.

Wide-brimmed hats, pillboxes adorned with flowers or feathers… In the 1950s, his hats were inseparable from his garments, reflecting the opulence of the Belle Époque style, for which the founder felt deep nostalgia. This ostentatious aesthetic was also familiar to John Galliano, who called on the infamous milliner Stephen Jones when the designer joined the house in 1996. Extravagant or slightly old-fashioned, the hats adorning the British director’s creations always aligned with a larger concept.

In short, hats are a cornerstone of Dior’s legacy, one that Jonathan Anderson seems to fully embrace. In most of the silhouettes from his Spring/Summer 2026 show, black hats are central. Resembling bicornes, their unusual shape also recalls the white headpiece from John Galliano’s iconic “nun” look for Diana Gärtner from his Fall/Winter 2000-2001 collection. Just like the sharp visor reminds us of the hat worn by Céline Dion at the Oscars ceremony in 1999…

Le tailleur bar, une évidence

Like the hats or the Dior logo, Jonathan Anderson wants to reintroduce some of the house’s most iconic elements. And if the Bar suit is certainly one of them, it’s also one that has already been revamped over time by every artistic director, from Galliano to Chiuri. But under the Irish designer’s lead, it takes on a playful, even surrealist quality, infused with the signature universe he developed at Loewe or within his own label.

For the Spring/Summer 2026 collection, he revives the iconic New Look in a nearly literal way, shortening both the pleated skirt and the cinched jacket. The silhouette becomes more structured. The buttons, traditionally lining the torso down to the navel, are reduced to just two below the bust.

This new placement is far from arbitrary. It strongly echoes the design of coats and blazers from the A-line created by Christian Dior for the Spring/Summer 1955 couture collection. That previous collection introduced a looser, flared silhouette, reminiscent of the letter A. As a fusion of two of the house’s most iconic looks, this new interpretation mostly appears in one of the green coats featured in the show.

Un premier défilé femme paré de nœuds

It’s impossible to miss the abundance of bows embellishing the silhouettes of Jonathan Anderson’s debut womenswear collection for Dior. Decorating the bodice and skirt of a dress or subtly outlined along a neckline, this pattern runs throughout the show.

This particular detail is also deeply rooted in Dior’s visual language. Christian Dior was fascinated by courtly garments and the splendour of the 19th century – Marie-Antoinette, the Duchess of Fontanges… From his very first collection, bows adorned necklines, embellished hats, fastened belts, and completed the designer’s glamorous, romantic aesthetic. They even graced the first bottle of the fragrance Miss Dior! A baroque, somewhat theatrical vision in which John Galliano’s imagination also found fertile ground.

It’s no surprise, then, that Jonathan Anderson is now revamping this motif for the Spring/Summer 2026 season. Although it was a bit too literal sometimes. While we loved the tailored looks mimicking the shape of a bow, we had some doubt about the literal reproduction of the strapless, draped dresses.

La robe Junon réinventée par Jonathan Anderson

Another cornerstone of the Dior legacy is the Junon dress. Unveiled by Christian Dior in his Fall/Winter 1949 haute couture collection, it featured large tulle petals embroidered with sequins by René Bégué, reminiscent of the elegant plumage of a peacock. Magnificent and just as awe-inspiring today, the look has left a lasting impression. In 2023, Natalie Portman wore a replica on the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival. John Galliano offered a literal reinterpretation in 2010, while Maria Grazia Chiuri dedicated her first haute couture collection in 2017 to this iconic piece.

In Jonathan Anderson’s mind, however, this sumptuous, luxurious look is revamped in a more ready-to-wear form. The skirt is shortened mid-thigh and the signature sequinned petals are replaced with embroidered lace. The traditional bustier gives way to a simple white top with a collar matching the skirt.

The Irish designer indeed grasps the house’s most iconic elements and tries to make them his own in this debut collection. We could just as easily point out references to John Galliano’s “Nude” collection, or Dior’s A-line silhouette… But this review would then have no end, and perhaps, miss the point. Much like the Irish designer himself, who had to take a deep dive into the house’s large archives.

All the looks from the Dior Spring/Summer 2026 show