Sister Dresses: Christian Dior’s “Junon” and “Venus”
Among the greatest strengths of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco’s fashion collection are its exemplary holdings of designs by the preeminent French couturier Christian Dior. From the debut of his first collection in 1947 until his untimely death a decade later, Dior produced garments that were antidotes to the austere fashions of World War II, with superb construction and tailoring, ample use of luxurious fabrics, and an abundance of sumptuous decorative treatments.
The designer’s “Junon” gown, along with its sister design, “Venus,” represents the pinnacle of his creativity. Named in honour of the Roman goddess of marriage and fertility, “Junon” is formed from diaphanous layers of silk tulle, with glittering sequin embroidery on curved skirt flounces meant to evoke the feathers of the goddess’s favourite bird, the peacock.
The designer’s “Junon” gown, along with its sister design, “Venus,” represents the pinnacle of his creativity. Named in honour of the Roman goddess of marriage and fertility, “Junon” is formed from diaphanous layers of silk tulle, with glittering sequin embroidery on curved skirt flounces meant to evoke the feathers of the goddess’s favourite bird, the peacock.
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