Friday afternoon in Paris was a big one for the British designer Kim Jones. Not only did the artistic director present his latest menswear collection for Dior, but he collected the prestigious Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur, a rarity for someone from outside France. In a fashion moment par excellence, he was presented with the award by Anna Wintour, becoming a knight in the process.
Jones has now been at Dior for six years, designing the brand’s menswear. Over that time, he has explored the brand’s rich archive and also his own historical interests, including TS Eliot’s The Waste Land and Vanessa Bell’s house, Charleston. This show was no different. It took Christian Dior’s mid-50s Ligne H collection as its jump off but made Casanova – the 18th-century Italian author known for his multiple relationships with women – its muse.
If Casanova is often seen as a “ladies’ man”, Jones played with that phrase as one of gender fluidity. The show notes explained that it translated as “a mix of the masculine and the feminine … together with the excesses of the 18th century, found in the idea of the extravagant dresser”. Tropes that might traditionally be seen more as part of the womenswear lexicon – sparkles, pink, bows, boat necks and long skirts – were here worn by men. It was an elegant collection with a smattering of subversion.
Dior had another spotlight beyond Paris this week – in a context where any idea of gender fluidity would have short shrift. Ivanka Trump wore the women’s collection (designed by Maria Grazia Chiuri) for the inauguration of her father Donald Trump, and the new first lady, Melania, wore the brand for a reception at the weekend. LVMH, the parent company, also gave its allegiance to the new president: the CEO Bernard Arnault was present at the inauguration, along with two of his children, Delphine (CEO of Dior) and Alexandre, who works with Tiffany.
Jones announced in October that he would be leaving his other role in fashion, designing womenswear and couture at Fendi. His post-show bow at Dior, including a hug for Delphine Arnault in the front row, had people speculating change might be afoot here too. With fashion’s rumour mill in action around the top job at luxury houses including Gucci, Burberry and Margiela, Jones’ name has been in the frame, particularly for Burberry which has not flourished under its current artistic director, Daniel Lee.
“Kim Jones would be a perfect fit at Burberry,” wrote influential fashion insider instagram account, boring.com, after the Fendi announcement “but I doubt if LVMH will let him go easily or if Burberry can even afford him right now”.
Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur, France’s highest honour, has previously been given to big fashion players including Valentino Garavani and Diane von Furstenberg, as well as Delphine. Before the ceremony Jones described it as a “life milestone”, though he said notoriety was not his endgame.
“I get stopped by people [in the street] and that’s always nice, but generally I prefer being able to get on with my daily life.”
With speculation swirling, he will no doubt want to end the rumours and get on with the job, whatever that job may be.
