Dior creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri kicked off the Paris Haute Couture fashion shows on Monday with a lineup of hooped petticoats and corsets in sheer, airy fabrics.
Models marched down the runway in low heels parading ruffled and lacy looks, some with voluminous skirts, decorated with tufts of fabrics, sequins or ribbons that streamed behind.
Chiuri drew on the house's original La Cigale silhouette from the early 1950s, known for a tightly-cinched waist, as well as the looser Trapeze line from the late 1950s, throwing fitted jackets over short, puffy skirts and decorating tulle with embroidery.
Models wore their hair slicked back, in a mohawk-like style, with a row of feather-tipped spikes that added a punk flair to the look.
The LVMH-owned fashion house held the show in a temporary structure in the gardens of the Rodin Museum where the set was decorated by colorful artwork by Rithika Merchant. The artist's fantastical creatures and tropical vegetation added to the otherworldly flavor of the catwalk presentation.
The Haute Couture fashion shows in Paris run through Jan. 30 and feature some of the industry's best-known labels including Chanel, Valentino and Jean Paul Gaultier.
