Dior Celebrates Mexican Femininity
Dior called on 8 talented female Mexican photographers to put their twist on their 2019 Cruise collection.
Dior called on 8 talented female Mexican photographers to put their twist on their 2019 Cruise collection.
Text: Zoe Elefterin
The Escaramuza woman represented the perfect dichotomy of strength and tradition for Maria Grazia Chiuri’s 2019 Cruise collection for Dior. Escaramuza is a Mexican sport where teams of women are mounted on horses while performing intricate choreography at galloping speeds. Perhaps the most striking aspect of the sport is the traditional dress that the Escaramuzas wear, which was obviously a great source of inspiration for Dior.
To respectfully document the clothing, Dior approached 8 female Mexican photographers to shoot the collection: Pia Elizondo, Tania Franco Klein, Flor Garduño, Maya Goded, Cristina de Middel, Ruth Prieto Arenas, Paola Vivas and Fabiola Zamora. “When I got all the collection, I was like, ‘wow’. No way I’ll make a picture that doesn’t look good with this”, spoke one of the photographers in a behind-the-scenes video by Dior.
For women in Mexico, the word “tradition” may not always carry an overtly positive connotation, as even the sport of Escaramuza was originally performed by men. “There’s a lot of sides of being female in Mexico because we come from a really sexist culture. That's why I really like the idea of the Escaramuza”, said another photographer. Additionally, only 2 of the 8 chosen photographers had experience in fashion, which allowed for a diverse range of artistic interpretation. What came from the shoots were artfully constructed narratives of the Mexican female experience. Glance at some of the images below:
