Dior Cruise 2026 and the Exit of Maria Grazia Chiuri
Maria Grazia Chiuri left a lasting legacy at Dior, and with her final farewell, she left us with one last magical collection.
On a rainy night in Rome, ghosts drifted through the Villa Albani Torlonia. In the Dior Cruise 2026 show, models appeared in tulle and lace, and blended the lines between reality and the imagined. The collection explored the connection between fashion and costumes in cinema, as well as serving as a tribute to Rome.
The collection consisted of 49 ready-to-wear looks, as well as 31 haute couture looks from the Dior AW25 collection, which would normally be unveiled a month later in Paris. The dress code paid homage to Mimì Pecci Blunt’s “Bal Blanc” of 1930, with women wearing white and men wearing black. Mimì Pecci Blunt was a central part of the collection’s inspiration. She was an aristocrat and known for her parties and patronage to the arts, with her founding the Teatro della Cometa. Dior later bought the theater in 2020, with Maria Grazia Chiuri primarily in charge of the restoration process.
Photos: Paolo Lanzi / Gorunway.com/ Vogue Runway
Further inspiration for this show is the connection between cinema and fashion. Cinema’s enchanting depiction of fashion influenced the designs of this collection, such as in Antonio Pietrangeli’s Ghosts of Rome. Chirui collaborated with Tirelli for the show as a further testament to the importance of costume design in cinema. The show included replica pieces from Tirelli’s archives that were reimagined in order to create a vision of “The Ghosts of Rome,” and transformed the runway into a theatrical performance.
The collection centered heavily around lace and sheer outfits, with 72.5% of the looks featuring sheer elements, and 50% including lace pieces. Lace masks were worn in 18.75% of the collection, an ode to Mimì Pecci Blunt’s Bal Blanc. Dresses were in 76.25% of the looks, and outerwear was featured in 28.75% of the collection. The most prevalent color was white, which was featured in 47.5% of the collection, followed by black in 27.5% and beige in 32.5%.
Photo: Paolo Lanzi / Gorunway.com/ Vogue Runway
Two days after the show, Maria Grazia Chiuri’s exit as the Creative Director of Dior was announced. Just 4 days after this announcement, Dior officially announced Jonathan Anderson as her replacement. Chiuri was the first female creative director in Dior’s history, and during her tenure she was in charge of women’s ready-to-wear, haute couture, and accessories, with some of her most notable contributions being the launch of the Dior Book Tote and the rerelease of the iconic Dior Saddle Bag. In 2019, she won the Légion d’Honneur, France’s highest civilian honor, for her work at Dior and embracing feminism in her designs. She has staged some of the most imaginative runways in the history of Dior, such as Resort 2024 in Mexico City and Fall 2025 in Kyoto. Chiuri’s final collection with Dior was the first Dior show in Rome, and the collection was her tribute to her home and the magic of the Eternal City.
