Raf Simons To Replace John Galliano At Dior

 

Raf Simons will take the top design spot at Dior.
“It is with tremendous excitement that the House of Dior is welcoming Raf Simons, one of today’s greatest talents,” a written statement from the company said. “Raf Simons’ journey with the house of Dior will propel its iconic style into the 21st Century.”
The decision to name Simons as artistic director of women’s Haute Couture, Ready-to-Wear and Accessory collections comes after more than a year of speculation and tight-lipped planning at the 66-year-old fashion house. John Galliano, the gifted but troubled designer who had revitalized the brand since 1997, was fired in March 2011 for anti-Semitic rants in a Paris cafe.


Brand-name designers like Marc Jacobs, Albert Elbaz and Phoebe Philo had widely been speculated as candidates to replace Galliano, though Bernard Arnault, who is the head of Dior parent company Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, had repeatedly said the group would take its time to find a suitable replacement. 
Simons, a 44-year-old Belgian, designed the Jil Sander womens collections until the end of this fashion season, showing his 2013 spring line before departing the runway in tears. He had left in favor of Ms. Sander herself returning to work; talk had swirled for months that LVMH was courting him for the Dior position along with the others. Simons will reportedly continue his eponymous mens line concurrently with his tenure at Dior.


The move is the latest of several important changes among the industry’s best brands, with Sander returning to her own label, Dior alumn Hedi Slimane replacing Stefano Pilati at Yves Saint Laurent, and the recent sudden absence of Simon Spurr at his own line. Spurr has yet to disclose the reason for his departure.
At Dior, Simons will have to marry his fresh, minimal aesthetic to the ultra-feminine lacquer the dresses at Dior embody.
He told Cathy Horyn at The New York Times that he is up to the task.
“I haven’t been in the archives yet, but for me the strongest impact is the first 10 years of Dior and how to link that to the 21st century,” Simons said. “Mr. Dior was very innovative during a short time span. And it was in the middle of the 20th century, a period I am very interested in, whether it’s linked to fashion, architecture or art. So I find it very challenging to rethink couture.”
Simons will show his first collection in July for the fall haute couture shows.

 source: forbes.com