Rihanna Revisits Dior’s Iconic New Look Silhouette
Like a true style icon, Rihanna knows the power of looking to the past when curating her present-day wardrobe. Attending the Dior spring 2024 couture show in Paris on Monday, the singer and entrepreneur channeled one of the legendary French fashion house’s most seminal moments: the unveiling of Christian Dior’s groundbreaking New Look in 1947.
Arriving at the event held at Dior’s historic headquarters on Avenue Montaigne, Rihanna embodied the dramatic,ultra-feminine aesthetic Dior introduced after World War II. The superstar wore a black moiré peaked lapel jacket with a matching pencil skirt, cinching her waist to dramatic effect. Rihanna added on a matching cap and white pumps featuring embellished ankle straps, while her leather accessories included a thin belt, gloves and an all-black Lady Dior handbag.
Ever the style icon, Rihanna made the archival look her own by accessorizing with a black leather beret, elbow-length gloves, a thin belt, and vertiginous white slingback pumps decorated with eye-catching embellished ankle straps. A Lady Dior handbag in glossy black leather completed the monochromatic look.
Starting with the New Look-inspired clothing itself, Rihanna wore an off-the-shoulder puffer coat (which bears similarities to Monsieur Dior’s Bar Jacket), cinched at the waist with a wide black belt. The dramatic folded top part of the jacket revealed a semi-sheer black bra. Adding an extra layer of elegance, Rihanna’s look continued into a matching knee-length skirt. As with many of Rihanna’s best fashion moments, the real fun begins with the accessories.
In true Rihanna fashion, the jewels were out in full force, with the singer wearing a striking diamond necklace and diamond earcuffs. The all-black look was broken up with a pair of white pointed-toe heels and a sparkly anklet. To finish the super-cool Dior moment, Rihanna added a floppy newsboy-style black cap to the ensemble, which was an unexpected—yet welcomed—touch.
Rihanna was also the first Black woman to front a campaign for Dior back in 2015. She appeared in the French brand’s “Secret Garden” film series shot by legendary photographer Steven Klein. The campaign celebrated femininity and featured Rihanna roaming the halls and gardens of the Palace of Versailles wearing designs handpicked by then-creative director Raf Simons.
Attending this week’s show, Rihanna joined top-tier celebrity guests like actors Anya Taylor-Joy, Carla Bruni, and Elizabeth Debicki. The Australian actress looked sublime in an emerald green gown as part of her press tour for Netflix’s hit series “The Crown,” for which she recently won her first major awards.
As for Dior himself, the legendary late designer is about to get his big Hollywood break. This February, Apple TV+ will debut an original series titled “The New Look” profiling Christian Dior and his peer designers Coco Chanel, Pierre Balmain, and Cristóbal Balenciaga in the post-World War II era. With an A-list cast including Ben Mendelsohn as Dior and Juliette Binoche as Chanel, the show promises a behind-the-scenes look at the seismic shift these icons created in the fashion world through their innovative designs.
If her most recent appearance is any indication, viewers can count on Rihanna continuing to pay homage to Dior for decades to come.
