F/W 2007 Christian Dior Haute Couture by John Galliano Black Velvet Beaded Dress
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Light wear throughout.
- Seller Location:West Hollywood, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU2388218577862
John Galliano for Christian Dior
Known for introducing rich theatricality and memorable fashion spectacles to the runway, John Galliano has enjoyed a singular career. The audacious British designer has garnered universal acclaim for genre-breaking collections not only at his eponymous label but also for Christian Dior.
From his embroidered absinthe-green Oscars gown for actress Nicole Kidman to the iconic sleeveless newspaper-print dress that Sex and the City’s Carrie Bradshaw made famous, Galliano’s intricate and multifaceted work is reliably collectible and newsworthy, drawing on history as often as it embodies a fresh and forward-looking sensibility, and over the years the designer has helped shape an ever-broadening new legion of enthusiasts for Parisian couture.
Born in Gibraltar but raised in South London by strict Roman Catholic working-class parents, Galliano attended the all-boys Church of England grammar school, where his flamboyance and interest in art attracted the attention of bullies. Eventually, Galliano ended up at the prestigious design and art school Central Saint Martins College (then called Saint Martin’s School of Art), where fellow British designers Stella McCartney and Alexander McQueen also trained.
Galliano flourished at Central Saint Martins. While a student, he worked in the costume department at the National Theatre in London. His graduate collection in 1984, dubbed “Les Incroyables” and named for post–French Revolution fashion lovers, was modeled by close friends of his and earned a standing ovation. The line ended up in the storefront windows of London luxury boutique Brown’s on South Molton Street, and Galliano’s first official collection — after he graduated — debuted at Paris Fashion Week in 1989.
In the early 1990s, Galliano’s relationship with his financial backer, Plein Sud’s Faycal Amor, ended, and by 1994, he was broke and sleeping on the floor of a friend’s apartment. Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour and then-Vanity Fair editor André Leon Talley stepped in and introduced the budding designer to Portuguese socialite and fashion patron São Schlumberger and others.
At Schlumberger’s Hôtel Particulier, Galliano’s shows became the stuff of fashion legend. His collection, a blend of Japanese modernist style as well as nostalgia for Art Deco and 1940s’ tailoring, earned raves in glossy magazines and garnered the attention of Princess Diana, Madonna and other fashion luminaries.
Once the Galliano name was well known among the world’s most stylish set, the chairperson of LVMH, Bernard Arnault, appointed Galliano head designer of French fashion house Givenchy. One year later, in 1996, LVMH moved him to the design team at Dior. In just eight weeks, Galliano produced 50 looks for Dior Haute Couture’s brilliant Spring/Summer 1997 Maasai collection and would ultimately design a mind-boggling eight collections a year for the storied French fashion house until 2011. Today, Galliano is the creative director of Maison Margiela.
Shop vintage and contemporary John Galliano for Christian Dior evening dresses and gowns, shoes, handbags and other clothing and accessories on 1stDibs.
Christian Dior
When Christian Dior launched his couture house, in 1946, he wanted nothing less than to make “an elegant woman more beautiful and a beautiful woman more elegant.” He succeeded, and in doing so the visionary designer altered the landscape of 20th century fashion. Vintage Dior bags, shoes, evening dresses, shirts and other garments and accessories are known today for their feminine and sophisticated sensibility.
Dior was born in Granville, on the Normandy coast, in 1905. His prosperous haute bourgeois parents wanted him to become a diplomat despite his interest in art and architecture. However, they agreed to bankroll an art gallery, which Dior opened in 1928 in Paris with a friend.
This was the start of Dior’s rise in the city’s creative milieu, where he befriended Pablo Picasso and Jean Cocteau. After seven years as an art dealer, Dior retrained as a fashion illustrator, eventually landing a job as a fashion designer for Robert Piguet, and in 1941, following a year of military service, he joined the house of Lucien Lelong. Just five years later, with the backing of industrialist Marcel Boussac, the ascendant Dior established his own fashion house, at 30 avenue Montaigne in Paris.
Just two years after the end of World War II, the fashion crowd and the moribund haute couture industry were yearning, comme tout Paris, for security and prosperity, desperate to discard the drab, sexless, utilitarian garb imposed by wartime deprivation. They needed to dream anew.
And Dior delivered: He designed a collection for a bright, optimistic future. “It’s quite a revolution, dear Christian!” exclaimed Carmel Snow, the prescient American editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar, famously proclaiming, “Your dresses have such a new look.” The press ran with the description, christening Dior’s debut Spring/Summer haute couture collection the New Look. “God help those who bought before they saw Dior,” said Snow. “This changes everything.”
Dior’s collection definitively declared that opulence, luxury and femininity were in. His skirts could have 40-meter-circumference hems, and outfits could weigh up to 60 pounds. They were cut and shaped like architecture, on strong foundations that molded women and “freed them from nature,” Dior said. Rather than rationing, his ladies wanted reams of fabric and 19-inch waists enforced by wire corsets, and the fashion world concurred. The debut got a standing ovation.
In the subsequent decade, Paris ruled as the undisputed fashion capital of the world, and Christian Dior reigned as its king. With the luxuriously full skirts of his New Look, suits and his drop-dead gorgeous couture dresses and ball gowns worthy of any princess, Dior gave women the gift of glamour they’d lost in the miserable years of war.
On 1stDibs, find an exquisite range of vintage Christian Dior clothing, jewelry, handbags and other items.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: West Hollywood, CA
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 1 day of delivery.
- F/W 1997 Gianni Versace Padded Neckline Black Leather Bodycon Tube DressBy Gianni VersaceLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting a beautiful strapless black leather Versace tube dress, designed by Gianni Versace. From the Fall/Winter 1997 collection, similar entirely black leather tube dresses debut...Category
1990s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- F/W 1999 Roberto Cavalli Grey Animal Print Trompe l'Oeil Stretch Cowl Neck DressBy Roberto CavalliLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting a grey cow print Roberto Cavalli dress. From the Fall/Winter 1999 collection, a similar dress with the same print was highlighted in the season's ad campaign. This fabulou...Category
Early 2000s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- S/S 2002 Gianni Versace by Donatella Red Eyelet Cutout Stretch Racerback DressBy Gianni Versace Couture, Donatella Versace for Gianni VersaceLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting a bright red eyelet cut-out Gianni Versace Couture dress, designed by Donatella Versace. From the Spring/Summer 2002 collection, this vibrant sleeveless dress features a w...Category
Early 2000s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- F/W 2001 Gucci by Tom Ford Runway Black Mesh External Bralette Babydoll DressBy Tom Ford for Gucci, GucciLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting a fabulous black mesh Gucci babydoll dress, designed by Tom Ford. From the Fall/Winter 2001 collection, this dress debuted on the season's ru...Category
Early 2000s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- F/W 2001 Gucci by Tom Ford Black Tulle Sleeveless Shift DressBy Tom Ford for Gucci, GucciLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting a black pleated chiffon Gucci dress, designed by Tom Ford. From the Fall/Winter 2001 collection, the top version of this dress in pink debuted on the season's runway as pa...Category
Early 2000s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- S/S 2004 Chloe by Phoebe Philo Black Beaded Heart Racerback Knit DressBy ChloéLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting a black racerback knit Chloé dress, designed by Phoebe Philo. From the Spring/Summer 2004 collection, this beautiful little black dress features a scoop neckline, racerback, flare at the skirt, and is made complete with beaded heart pendant details around the trim. Add this fabulous piece of Y2K Chloé by Phoebe...Category
Early 2000s French Cocktail Dresses
- Gianni Versace 1997 Couture fall black leather gownBy Gianni Versace, Gianni Versace CoutureLocated in CAPELLE AAN DEN IJSSEL, ZHGianni Versace was an influential Italian fashion designer who founded the Versace brand. In the fall of 1997, he presented his couture collection in Paris, which was widely acclaimed for its opulent fabrics, bold prints, and intricate detailing. The collection featured several notable pieces, such as a black evening gown with a plunging neckline and a gold-encrusted jacket. However, just a few days later, on July 15th, 1997, Gianni was tragically murdered outside his Miami Beach home. Despite his untimely death, his contributions to the world of fashion continue to be celebrated, and his legacy remains an inspiration too many. This collection is iconic as it’s the final collection before his passing. The collection very much showed a new direction for the house. Which was heading away from the bombshell curves and souped-up sex appeal that the house previously focussed on. But took more Inspirations to the new wave John Galliano and Mcqueen were leading. MET Gala: Salma Hayek y sus mejores momentos en la alfombra roja Vogue For the 1997 Met Gala Salma Hayek wore a very similar Gianni Versace look...Category
1990s Italian Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Jean Paul Gaultier fringed silk macramé dress, ss 2000By Jean Paul GaultierLocated in London, GB▪ Jean Paul Gaultier silk macramé dress ▪ Sold by One of a Kind Archive ▪ Spring-Summer 2000 ▪ Constructed from multicoloured printed silk ribbons ▪ Fri...Category
Early 2000s Italian Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Christian Dior by John Galliano grey checked nylon sheath dress, ss 2000By John Galliano for Christian Dior, Christian DiorLocated in London, GB▪ Christian Dior grey checked nylon sheath dress ▪ Designed by John Galliano ▪ Sold by One of a Kind Archive ▪ Spring-Summer 2000 ▪ Stretch nylon/elastane blend with a grey Prince of...Category
Early 2000s French Evening Dresses and Gowns
- John Galliano multicoloured viscose knit logo print maxi dress, ss 2002By John GallianoLocated in London, GB▪ John Galliano maxi dress ▪ Sold by One of a Kind ▪ Constructed from a viscose knit with multicoloured Galliano branded artwork ▪ V-neck ▪ Spaghetti straps ▪ Floor-length skirt ▪ S...Category
Early 2000s French Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Helmut Lang black lace hooded shift dress, ss 1996By Helmut LangLocated in London, GB▪ Helmut Lang black lace hooded shift dress ▪ Sold by One of a Kind Archive ▪ Spring-Summer 1996 ▪ V-neck ▪ Knee length ▪ Approx. size Small ▪ Made in Italy All photographs in thi...Category
1990s Italian Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Dolce & Gabbana gold lace and python shirt dress, ss 2005By Dolce & GabbanaLocated in London, GB▪ Dolce & Gabbana gold lace and python shirt dress ▪ Python trim ▪ 4 front python flap pockets ▪ Matching python belt ▪ Rolled-up sleeves ▪ Tortoise butt...Category
Early 2000s Italian Evening Dresses and Gowns
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
How John Galliano Caused Fashion Chaos around the Globe
The visionary designer epitomizes the pleasures and perils of irrepressible creative genius.
Barbra Streisand Channeled Klimt’s ‘Woman in Gold’ in This Shimmering Dress
Costumer to the stars Ray Aghayan brought the famed painting to life with his spectacular design.