The fashion show, held at the Musée Rodin, marked not only the Irish designer's debut in that territory, but also a decisive moment for the fashion house.
On January 26th 2026, Jonathan Anderson presented his first haute couture collection to Dior. The fashion show, held at the Musée Rodin, marked not only the Irish designer's debut in that territory, but also a decisive moment for the fashion house: the reaffirmation of haute couture as a space for experimentation, technical precision and language construction.
Appointed creative director of Dior eight months ago, Anderson faced one of the most demanding exercises in fashion. The Spring Summer 2026 collection brought together 63 looks that directly dialogue with the history of the house, without resorting to nostalgia. The result was a contemporary reading of haute couture, where tradition and creative process go hand in hand.
Founded in 1946, Dior built its identity based on haute couture. The New Look, introduced in the post-war period, redefined the feminine silhouette with delicate shoulders, marked waists and wide skirts — a structure that evoked the shape of a flower, a recurring symbol in the fashion house's imagination. Anderson builds on that legacy but chooses to expand it.
Unlike previous collections, where the floral reference appeared in a specific manner, here it becomes a conceptual axis. Flowers appear in the volumes, in the embroideries, in the jewels and in the scenography suspended above the fashion show space. Not as an ornament, but as a metaphor. The collection proposes haute couture as a living organism, in constant transformation, where technique and intuition coexist.
This approach reflects a thought already present in Anderson's trajectory. In her previous work, elements of nature were always reinterpreted in a structural way, often stressing the boundaries between fashion, art, and design. At Dior, that look gains scale and rigor. The silhouettes explore large volumes, fluid lines, and constructions that enhance body movement, with references to Magdalene Odundo ceramics, perceptible in the way in which the forms surround and shape the figure.
The accessories reinforce this authorial reading. Large earrings, bags made from embroidered fabrics and pieces with sculptural contours dialogue with the set without competing with it. The footwear, developed by Nina Christen, maintains the same precise and silent construction logic.
There are also clear references to the creative directors who preceded Anderson at Dior. The theatricality and the game of references refer to John Galliano's period, while restraint and formal clarity echo the work of Raf Simons. These quotes, however, appear in a subtle way, integrated into the collection's narrative.
Jonathan Anderson's debut in Dior haute couture is not based on immediate impact, but on building a solid discourse. It is a collection that understands the historical weight of the maison and, at the same time, proposes possible paths for the future of haute couture, less as a symbol of opulence and more as a space for research, technique and language.
At the opening of the Spring Summer 2026 haute couture week, Dior reaffirms its central role in this calendar. And Jonathan Anderson makes it clear that his vision for the house involves continuity, not rupture.
