On Friday I went to the 'Dior Illustrated' Exhibition as it was coming to an end. I am so glad I went because the illustrations that were featured by René Gruau were really wonderful.
The exhibition celebrated Gruau's fashion illustration for Christian Dior with a heavy emphasis on Dior Fragrances.
Rene Gruau captures the feel of the Dior image and mood. I really liked the 'Flower Woman' series. Dior loved flowers and they inspired him when designing clothes. I loved the colour schemes Grauau used in the paintings which were mainly created in goucahe and ink. I love the bouquet above, which looks alive and fragrant with the fast brush strokes and splodges of colour.
Dior and Grauau were both strongly influenced by the Belle Époque society that they were raised in. The idea of the sophisticared Parisian woman inspired them both and this can be seen in the illustrations, many of which feature red, black, leopard print, fans, lace, masks, blindfolds and I love this imagery. Women were painted slim and elegant.
Grauau focused heavily on painting for Dior Fragrances including those for men.
I generally love perfume bottles and loved looking at the original Dior Bottles including, 'Diorling', 'Miss Dior, 'J'adore' and 'Diorissimio'. I also liked the Baccarat Crystal Perfume bottles, above on the left. which were so luxurious. On the right is the 'Diorling' Bottle.
This is one of my favourite images from the show. Grauau was obsessed with the simple things women do daily, but this picture shows Grauau's passion for also playing with the arabesque. I love the way this Parisian woman is floating and the white tassels against the black. René Gruau's colour palettes are so striking but simple.
