30 September, 2024 Siobhan Marie Day 0 Comments 3 categories

Writer and journalist Justine Picardie takes us back to 1947 in this podcast interview to meet resistance fighter Catherine Dior. The youngest sister of the renowned French designer, Catherine’s story of survival during World War 2 is one of great courage and it is being told at last. Photo Credit: Travels Through Time

Interview with Justine Picardie: Miss Dior (1947)…

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Writer and journalist Justine Picardie takes us back to 1947 to meet resistance fighter Catherine Dior. The youngest sister of the renowned French designer, Christian Dior. Catherine’s story of survival during World War II is one of great courage and it is being told at last.

Justine Picardie arrives at The Fashion Awards 2019 held at Royal Albert Hall on December 2, 2019 in London, England. Photo by David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images

Catherine Dior circa 1940s Ginette Dior (2 August 1917 – 17 June 2008), better known as Catherine Dior, was a French Resistance fighter during World War II. Involved with the Franco-Polish intelligence unit F2 from November 1941, she was arrested in Paris in July 1944 by the Gestapo, then tortured and deported to the Ravensbrück women concentration camp. Dior was subsequently forced to work in the Torgau military prison, in the Buchenwald's satellite camp of Abberode, and finally in a factory near Leipzig. After her release in April 1945, she was awarded several medals of honour for her acts in the Resistance, most notably the Croix de Guerre, the King's Medal for Courage in the Cause of Freedom, and the Legion of Honour. After the end of the war, Dior spent the remainder of her life working with flowers: first as a flower trader in Paris, then as a flower farmer in Provence for the production of fragrance. She was close to her brother, the well-known couturier Christian Dior. Launched in 1947, the perfume Miss Dior is often said to have been named after her by Christian. Catherine Dior helped preserve her brother's legacy after his death in 1957, and she became the honorary president of the Christian-Dior Museum from 1999 until her death in 2008, aged 90.Ginette Dior (2 August 1917 – 17 June 2008), better known as Catherine Dior, was a French Resistance fighter during World War II. Involved with the Franco-Polish intelligence unit F2 from November 1941, she was arrested in Paris in July 1944 by the Gestapo, then tortured and deported to the Ravensbrück women concentration camp. Dior was subsequently forced to work in the Torgau military prison, in the Buchenwald's satellite camp of Abberode, and finally in a factory near Leipzig. After her release in April 1945, she was awarded several medals of honour for her acts in the Resistance, most notably the Croix de Guerre, the King's Medal for Courage in the Cause of Freedom, and the Legion of Honour. After the end of the war, Dior spent the remainder of her life working with flowers: first as a flower trader in Paris, then as a flower farmer in Provence for the production of fragrance. She was close to her brother, the well-known couturier Christian Dior. Launched in 1947, the perfume Miss Dior is often said to have been named after her by Christian. Catherine Dior helped preserve her brother's legacy after his death in 1957, and she became the honorary president of the Christian-Dior Museum from 1999 until her death in 2008, aged 90.

Christan Dior in 1947 Christian Ernest Dior (French: [kʁistjɑ̃ djɔʁ]; 21 January 1905 – 24 October 1957) was a French fashion designer and founder of one of the world's top fashion houses, Christian Dior SE. His fashion house is known all around the world, having gained prominence "on five continents in only a decade." Dior's skills led to his employment and design for various fashion icons in attempts to preserve the fashion industry during World War II. After the war, he founded and established the Dior fashion house, with his collection of the "New Look". In 1947, the collection debuted featuring rounded shoulders, a cinched waist, and very full skirt. The New Look celebrated ultra-femininity and opulence in women's fashion. Throughout his lifetime, he won numerous awards for Best Costume Design. He died in 1957.

German planes fly over Poland, Sept. 1939. Photo Credit: Defense.gov

In 1947, Christian Dior launched his debut collection in Paris and became a sensation. His designs were characterised by enormous, fairy-tale-like skirts and hyper-feminine silhouettes. It was christened the ‘New Look’ by the editor of Harper’s Bazaar, Carmel Snow, because it stood in such stark contrast to the sober women’s fashion of recent years.

Christian Dior outside his couture house circa 1950 © Association Willy Maywald/AGDP

The first Christian Dior show showing a model wearing the Bar suit. © Pat English On 12 February 1947, Christian Dior launched his first fashion collection for Spring–Summer 1947. The show of "90 models of his first collection on six mannequins" was presented in the salons of the company's headquarters at 30 Avenue Montaigne. Originally, the two lines were named "Corolle" and "Huit". However, the new collection went down in fashion history as the "New Look" after the editor-in-chief of Harper's Bazaar Carmel Snow exclaimed, "It's such a new look!" The New Look was a revolutionary era for women at the end of the 1940s. When the collection was presented, the editor in chief also showed appreciation by saying; "It's quite a revolution, dear Christian!" The debut collection of Christian Dior is credited with having revived the fashion industry of France. Along with that, the New Look brought back the spirit of haute couture in France as it was considered glamorous and young-looking. "We were witness to a revolution in fashion and to a revolution in showing fashion as well." The silhouette was characterized by a small, nipped-in waist and a full skirt falling below mid-calf length, which emphasized the bust and hips, as epitomized by the "Bar" suit from the first collection. The Bar suit was a contribution from the head of Dior's tailoring atelier, a young Pierre Cardin, who was employed by the house from 1947 to 1949. The collection overall showcased more stereotypically feminine designs in contrast to the popular fashions of wartime, with full skirts, tight waists, and soft shoulders. Dior retained some of the masculine aspects, as they continued to hold popularity through the early 1940s, but he also wanted to include more feminine style.

Presentation of the Jungle dress during the first fashion show, 1947. © Collection musée Christian Dior, Granville

The Bar Suit paraded in front of an assembly conquered by this new-found feminity after years of wartime austerity. The flattering curves and elegant simplicity were enchanting. © Collection musée Christian Dior, Granville

Guests attending the fashion show of the first collection, 1947. © Collection musée Christian Dior, Granville

Dior's skills led to his employment and design for various fashion icons in attempts to preserve the fashion industry during World War II. After the war, he founded and established the Dior fashion house, with his collection of the "New Look". In 1947, the collection debuted featuring rounded shoulders, a cinched waist, and very full skirt. The New Look celebrated ultra-femininity and opulence in women's fashion. It was christened the ‘New Look’ by the editor of Harper’s Bazaar, Carmel Snow, because it stood in such stark contrast to the sober women’s fashion of recent years. Photo Credit: Harper's Bazaar

Carmel Snow (born Carmel White; 21 August 1887 – 7 May 1961) was the editor-in-chief of the American edition of Harper's Bazaar from 1934 to 1958; and the chair of the magazine's editorial board. She was famously quoted as saying, "Elegance is good taste, plus a dash of daring". Photo Credit: Google Images

On 12 February 1947, Christian Dior launched his first fashion collection for Spring–Summer 1947. The show of "90 models of his first collection on six mannequins" was presented in the salons of the company's headquarters at 30 Avenue Montaigne. Originally, the two lines were named "Corolle" and "Huit". However, the new collection went down in fashion history as the "New Look" after the editor-in-chief of Harper's Bazaar Carmel Snow exclaimed, "It's such a new look!" The New Look was a revolutionary era for women at the end of the 1940s. When the collection was presented, the editor in chief also showed appreciation by saying; "It's quite a revolution, dear Christian!" The debut collection of Christian Dior is credited with having revived the fashion industry of France. Along with that, the New Look brought back the spirit of haute couture in France as it was considered glamorous and young-looking. "We were witness to a revolution in fashion and to a revolution in showing fashion as well." The silhouette was characterized by a small, nipped-in waist and a full skirt falling below mid-calf length, which emphasized the bust and hips, as epitomized by the "Bar" suit from the first collection. The Bar suit was a contribution from the head of Dior's tailoring atelier, a young Pierre Cardin, who was employed by the house from 1947 to 1949. The collection overall showcased more stereotypically feminine designs in contrast to the popular fashions of wartime, with full skirts, tight waists, and soft shoulders. Dior retained some of the masculine aspects, as they continued to hold popularity through the early 1940s, but he also wanted to include more feminine style. Photo Credit: Google Images

Yet what makes the glamour of Dior’s collection even more compelling to us today is the dark backdrop it was set against. Few knew then that just eighteen months before, Dior’s youngest sister, Catherine, had been liberated from the German concentration camp at Ravensbrück.

Catherine Dior’s Ravensbrück deportation card, 1946. © Collection Christian Dior Parfums, Paris.

Justine Picardie explores Catherine’s story in 1947 – the year that her brother made his break in a Paris still haunted by the war.

As ever, much, much more about this episode is to be found at the website tttpodcast.com.

Show Notes…

Scene One: 3 February, 1947, the War Crimes Court in Hamburg, Germany: the last day of the trial of 16 defendants (nine men and seven women) accused of crimes committed at Ravensbrück concentration camp.

HAMBURG RAVENSBRUCK TRIALS (HU 42867) Post 1945: The trial of the war criminals from Ravensbruck in the British Military Court at Hamburg, December 1946 to February 1947 Copyright: © IWM. Original Source: http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205222058

Scene Two: 12 February, 1947, 30 Avenue Montaigne, Paris: in his newly established couture house, Christian Dior is making his debut, with a collection that will revolutionise the world of fashion.

Scene Three: Late May, Provence, 1947: at the family farm that Catherine Dior inherited from her father, she is undertaking the annual harvest of rose de Mai, that will be used as a vital ingredient in her brother’s perfumes.