A Journey Worthy For A Queen
Christian Dior’s Spring 2004 Haute Couture show took us into a golden world full of King’s, Queen’s and hieroglyphics galore. Purple laser like lights flash back and forth and down the runway like a time machine taking us back to the era of Cleopatra. The Dior logo ever present in the background, the lasers settle lighting the runway and a silhouette appears in the dark, while Walk Like An Egyptian begins to play, and we know we are in for something we have never seen before.
Jaws drop as Nefertiti herself, otherwise known as supermodel Erin O’Connor walks onto the runway. Fitted in a gold Cleopatra-esque sheath silhouettes with corsets on each model to help bring the dresses even closer to the body. Head to toe in gold, with beyond oversized cuffs, gold nails, and glittering over exaggerated eye shadow. With Beyonce’s “Baby boy” lyrics playing repeated , let me go, let me breathe, we get the feeling that Cleopatra or the Women of Egypt will be journeying somewhere else soon…
With turquoise and coral accents to fit that of the period and beading adorning the sky high heels the models walked stiffly down the runway and posing in a way that could only remind me of something historic, but not quite as far back as the Egyptians. After some exhausting research I found it…that of Richard Avedon’s legendary photos of Dovima in 1955. The elaborately posed leaning backwards stances of the models reflected that of Dovima's now infamous photo with elephants, who inspired the show.
