Is Kim Jones Dior's saving grace?

Anyone who follows at least one news source knows that Dior has been in the hot seat recently, what with the Sauvage misstep and the surrounding debate of cultural appropriation. But if you look back, it becomes apparent that this isn't the only lowkey problematic thing about the luxury maison as of late.

When Maria Grazia Chuiri isn't relying on the history and recognition of Dior (whether it be in the form of an on the nose "new look" silhouette or a wearable BOX that is shaped like la maision de Dior), she'll go to her signature colonization couture (a term I so lovingly adopted from HauteleMode). And when that doesn't work, she always has white feminism to fall back on.

Yet while Christian Dior is really just in a questionable place right now, Dior Homme is thriving under Kim Jones. In March 2018, Jones was announced as the creative director of Dior Homme after his stint at Louis Vuitton, and since his first collection in Spring 2019, has started to change things up for the better. Instead of a myriad of well-tailored, black suits, Jones showed a palatable femininity in his designs that brought new life to the menswear establishment.

Invoking images of the irreverence of London streetwear while still calling back to motifs and colors used and loved by Monsieur Dior himself, Jones builds on the heritage of Dior without mimicking legacy designs. In the Pre-fall 2019 collection, he focuses on the futuristic, with sleek silhouettes and obliques, orbiting a giant metallic sculpture surrounded by lasers. His vision for Dior is a unique one, but his collections are not without subtle nods and gestures to Christian Dior's designs; amid the robo fantasy collection were a few of the new look silhouettes that the house is famous for.

In my opinion, the thing that makes Kim Jones such an incredible designer is his ability to connect with and understand his audience. In her review of his Spring 2020 collection, Vogue Chief Critic Sarah Mower wrote:

Jones clearly believes that 21st-century men see the rigid gendered binaries their fathers and grandfathers conformed to as a thing of the past.

By allowing himself to progress the luxury house's vision of menswear, Kim Jones has found a way to honor and pay tribute to the Dior namesake without being held prisoner by it. Maria Grazia Chuiri could learn a thing or two for him.