Kim Jones' Dior Homme SS19 Runway Debut Balances Heritage and Modern Styling
Staged in front of a pink KAWS ‘BFF’ statue made with 70,000 flowers.
On Saturday (June 23), Dior Homme‘s newly-appointed artistic director Kim Jones finally showed his first collection for the House during Paris Fashion Week Men’s. Staged at Garde Républicaine, the Spring/Summer 2019 presentation was delightfully refreshing, full of nods to Dior’s couture heritage with just the perfect dose of street sensibilities. Given Jones’ history-making Supreme collaboration during his time at Louis Vuitton, many anticipated that the designer would introduce elements of streetwear to his debut Dior collection — he did, but those details weren’t overwhelmingly in-your-face.
A wearable color palette of white, beige, light blue and soft pink set the tone of the SS19 range. Despite it being a menswear collection, Jones actually turned to the women’s couture history of the brand for inspiration, which explains the delicate materials and refined tailoring presented throughout the catwalk. Models were styled with slicked, side-parted hair with a single Christian Dior logo earring on one of their ears. Spring-ready suits were toughened up by streetwear-friendly sneakers, belts and backpacks, paired with bold silver chains and bracelets designed by the House’s new jewelry designer, AMBUSH‘s Yoon Ahn. Other accessories like the Saddle Bag-inspired pouches and belt bags, as well as the KAWS BFF keychains have also caught our eye. The previously-teased bee design by the artist found home on an all-over embroidered two-piece set as well.
Speaking of collaborations, 107 ALYX 9SM‘s Matthew Williams has also been tapped by Jones to work on the costume jewelry for the show. Reminiscent of his own rollercoaster-inspired buckle design, Williams has created a unique CD buckle as seen on a number of caps, belts and bags.
The elaborate use of the floral motif was also noteworthy. From the towering, 10-meter tall BFF statue made with 70,000 peonies and roses, to a lineup of modern separates designed with Raf Simons-esque blooming prints, the runway show feels like a fitting tribute to Dior but injected with a new, youthful energy. Scroll through the gallery above for highlights of the runway, and take a look inside the venue by checking out the snapshots below.
Stay tuned with us for more coverage on the Dior Homme SS19 show.
