Occasionally in your life, you will come across something that seems made for you. It combines everything you love into one place, and it is rarely repeated. For me, it was this gown. My previous blog posts obviously underscore my love of Dior, but there are a few pieces I love more than the rest. (I know, I know, it is like choosing a favourite child.) Christian Dior’s Debussy dress, worn by British ballerina Margot Fonteyn, is absolutely one of my favourites.
This gown was in the Dior: Designer of Dreams 2019 exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. However, it was not in the final Ballroom as you might expect, but rather in the Dior in Britain room, and for good reason. This dress belonged to Royal Ballet dancer Margot Fonteyn, one of Dior’s most celebrated clients.
“A favourite dress was ‘Debussy,’ an evening ensemble in blue silk net embroidered with iridescent sequins, featuring a strapless bodice, slender column-like skirt, and separate sweeping train, from Dior’s Ligne Verticale collection.” (Ballerina: Fashion’s Modern Muse, 151.)
I know that Dior is known for the New Look, with a narrow waist and wide hips, but this gown shows his range and breadth as a designer. Fonteyn was a Dior client for well over a decade, and she bought several pieces from the S:S 1950 collection, including this gown. She was a fashion force to be reckoned with, and her couture connections helped a lot.
And it isn’t just me that loves this gown, either! It is in the Fashion Museum’s collection in Bath, with many of Fonteyn’s pieces, but was lent to the V&A to for the Dior exhibition. It was also included in the exhibition book for Ballerina at the Museum at FIT- it is rightfully a popular garment to showcase.
Have you seen Dior’s Debussy dress in person?
Cheers,
The Historian
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