Most people can only dream of an haute couture dress. The nearest many of us probably get is to buy the lipstick models wear on the catwalk.
Yet even for those fortunate enough to be invited to the Paris shows, the spellbinding photographs by the legendary French fashion photographer Patrick Demarchelier and bound in the new book Dior Couture, provide an experience beyond the catwalk. These images combine the artistry of the haute couturier with the vision of the photographer to inspire our imagination.
Dior Couture (published by Rizzoli) is a compelling montage of creations by some of the finest designers who worked at the French label, including that of the founder himself. It presents the photographer's personal view of fashion from the great couture house.
The book stars the most beautiful couture pieces produced by the house, photographed over a three-year period in Demarchelier's New York, Paris and Shanghai studios, and features dreamy images of 150 dresses, suits and coats made in the Dior ateliers since its founding in 1947.
'The selection was made between Dior, the stylists I've been working with on the project, and myself,' says Demarchelier. 'We were given full access to the Dior archives. It was amazing.'
These range from the cinch-waisted full-skirted New Look silhouette created by Dior himself, to the work of his successors, Yves Saint Laurent, Marc Bohan (the very first Dior show Demarchelier ever attended) and, until last year, John Galliano. Most of the pictures are of Galliano's work, as well as a couple of shots of Saint Laurent and Bohan's outfits from the 1950s and '60s, but there is nothing of Gianfranco Ferr? who immediately preceded Galliano.