Vogue Chaos Issue 16: JW Anderson's Dior Debut - Loewe Again?

Is Jonathan Anderson’s Dior Men meaningfully different from JW Anderson or Loewe?

JW Anderson’s Dior Debut started with the invitation in the form of an egg plate, inspired by Lucien Freud’s painting for the Duchess of Devonshire which was just a plate with four eggs. The invite was a sculptural plate, very french, containing 3 eggs, which was perhaps a reference to his third stint as a creative director. It represents a new beginning, with the pristine white of the plate acting as a clean slate. Which it was, considering how Kim Jone’s Dior Men was an identity-less mess wavering from streetwear to feminine couture based on whatever the trends dictated.

This was followed by teasers of Maria Grazia’s reimagined book tote that made me stop in my tracks, full of doubt at too literal of an interpretation and seemingly AI generated designs. Having been a long-time enthusiastic stan I was hesitant and wondered how this would be different from Loewe or his namesake label.

Is Jonathan Anderson’s Dior Men meaningfully different from JW Anderson or Loewe?

JW Anderson: If you look at the menswear collections from the past few years, it is giving degenerate overly sexual grungy artistic designs. They are experimental to point of ridiculousness, always absurd and crafty. There are elements of gender bending and cerebral sexiness in every collection.

Loewe: Loewe shares the playfulness of JWA with elevated craftsmanship. The resources provide him an avenue to play with expensive materials and be less grungy, more spanish refined, but a bit shy of premium formality. Massive volumes and sculptural shapes create both seriousness in the craftsmanship yet a cartoonish silhouette that is respectable. Surrealism is displayed in its 21st century avatar, very different from what Daniel is doing at Schiaparelli, and is perhaps one of the only convincing steps forward in the art form through the medium of fashion.

Dior: While not initially excited about breaking the magical connection of JW Anderson with Loewe, I am very pleased to see this collection, no notes. I was never a Kim Jones fan and found is art references contrived. I was afraid JWA would be flying too close to that territory with the book tote drops BUT I am glad to report he showed restraint. Dior is majorly a womenswear brand so bringing this to menswear helps him bring to the forefront his androgynous design preferences when he uses the Delft dress to inform the voluminous design of his cargos which were a key highlight of the show.

In conclusion, yes, all the brands represent a slightly different version of Jonathan but it is more of an evolution. What ties it all together is constant experimentation, playfulness, art, and unbridled creativity.

Why does he still need JW Anderson to exist?

Without this space for him to go crazy and put out all his wild ideas I think the chaos would slip through to more structured vision at Dior/Loewe. Jonathan needs an outlet which JW Anderson provides, where imagination is his only constraint. He can experiment there he has enough resources. At Dior it allows him to not lose it when his entire creative vision cannot be realised and needs to be reigned in by the atelier or the merchandisers. It is easier to give up control on one side when the other allows you complete freedom. How does he not get tired of producing that many collections every year? It has just been one so far and in 2-3 years we will know the toll it exacts on him. Karl was the only one who did it and it came from his extensive reading and connections with people who were defining culture and unlimited resources. Jonathan has these too - would it result in the same stamina?

In his own words, you have to start somewhere.