Maria Grazia Chiuri had warrior women in mind for her Dior SS25 show which opened with the Italian artist and archer Sagg Napoli striding down the catwalk in super-heroine mode. She was wearing a one-shoulder bodysuit and gladiator mini skirt, before taking an arrow from her Dior quiver and firing down the catwalk for a bullseye. The glass partitions which lined the runway for safety, did not dampen the power or fierceness of the act. Strong women, like Diana the Huntress, the Amazons and even Wonder Woman were her inspiration, as well as a 1951 asymmetrically tailored couture interpretation of a riding attire named ‘Amazone’ and monogrammed pieces from Marc Bohan’s Dior sport line introduced in the mid-1960s.

Her muses might be of myth and legend but Chiuri’s clothes are rooted in the reality of modern women’s lives. They speak of ease and beauty, femininity and empowerment. And so it was with this collection where active sports and streetwear informed the looks from dynamic, asymmetric bodysuits worn under sheer, wisp dresses and glittering fringed kilts or mesh joggers paired with chic blazers, to flying suit-style silk tops and trousers, cinched and clinched with parachute straps, leather biker onesies and baggy Dior tracksuits. Dior’s precision tailoring was also on show, with shirts and jackets cut to expose a shoulder – sensual and chic. Gladiator trainers, sporty cross-body bags and elasticated headbands finished the look. Strong, active sporty women are at the root of Chiuri’s Dior. (Remember her debut collection of fencing looks?). With this collection, Chiuri was making a point. Her active, heroic, Amazonian women show that femininity, power and strength can go hand in hand.

dior.com