Jonathan Anderson staged his debut Spring/Summer 2026 menswear collection for Dior in a velvet-draped room inspired by the interiors of Berlin’s Gemäldegalerie, establishing from the outset that this would be a season shaped by art, culture, and quiet revolution.
Showcased in a symbolic setting, a museum where history lives on and where, as the show notes put it, “conversations happen and history becomes part of the everyday.” That metaphor extends to the collection, which doesn’t so much reference the Maison’s archives as it rummages through them with curiosity and affection. Hanging on the walls were paintings by Jean Siméon Chardin, the 18th-century French artist known for his reverent portrayals of everyday life. It was a fitting choice, since Chardin rejected theatrical grandeur in favor of sincerity, intimacy, and empathy. All values the new Creative Director seems to be embracing as new cornerstones for the Maison.
Courtesy of Dior
The collection itself, titled “Stretching the Horizon,” is both a homage and update. Anderson begins with the familiar use of Donegal tweeds, regimental neckties, and tailcoats that speak to aristocratic formality. But these pieces are paired with relaxed silhouettes and modern ease, giving the collection a sense of spontaneity. The Bar jacket appears alongside 18th- and 19th-century waistcoats and frock coats, each reworked with the precision.
Style, as Anderson states, is “an inquiry into the unattainable and undefinable.” It becomes a way to experiment with contradiction and character, using clothing to explore the shifting roles of aristocrat, rebel, and romantic all at once.
Courtesy of Dior
Even before the show began, Anderson made it clear this wasn’t going to be just another debut. The invitation arrived inside a sleek gray box holding a porcelain plate topped with three sculpted eggs, a surreal little detail that nodded to Christian Dior’s love of omelettes and to the kind of playful trompe-l’œil you’d find in antique French ceramics.
Courtesy of Dior
That same quirky charm carried into the collection’s accessories with stitched Book Totes with the covers of Les Liaisons Dangereuses by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos, In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, and Dracula by Bram Stoker. Even the Lady Dior was reimagined by Sheila Hicks. Each one was playful and just a little strange in the best way.
Courtesy of Dior
Following Maria Grazia Chiuri’s departure last month, after nearly a decade of shaping the Maison’s vision in womenswear, Jonathan Anderson now becomes the first designer to oversee all three of Dior’s major creative divisions. Initially appointed to lead menswear, his role has since expanded, marking a historic consolidation of creative power and signaling the House’s full confidence in his vision and versatility.
For industry insiders, this appointment had long felt inevitable. Anderson’s work at Loewe has been transformative, turning the once-niche Spanish leather goods house into a fashion darling known for its eccentric sophistication and visual storytelling. At the same time, his namesake label, JW Anderson, has become a space for experimentation where subversion, craftsmanship, and theatricality collide. While his Dior debut offers an abundance of archival play and intellectual references, what sets it apart is the ease with which he disarms the House’s formality. There is no burden of legacy; instead, every garment, accessory, and gesture in the show asked: What do we do with history?
Courtesy of Dior
In taking the reins of all creative branches, Anderson now has the opportunity (and the pressure) to shape the full new identity of the House. In other words, respond to the question posed lines above. Few designers have been handed this kind of authority at a brand of Dior’s magnitude. His future collections will shape its image, voice, and what the brand means at a deeper level.
To underscore the significance of the event, just look at the front row. Rihanna and A$AP Rocky arrived in coordinated looks that immediately set the tone. They were joined by Robert Pattinson, Daniel Craig, Sabrina Carpenter, Donatella Versace, Pharrell, Natalia Vodianova, Luca Guadagnino, Josh O’Connor, Mike Faist, Drew Starkey, Mia Goth, Manu Rios, Sam Nivola, Ethel Cain, LaKeith Stanfield, among others—a guest list that spoke to the cultural breadth and creative pull of Anderson’s Dior debut.
If this is any indication, that story will be one of nuance and nerve. A Dior that looks backward only to sprint forward. One that treats elegance as a personality, and a Maison that dares to stretch its horizon with a creative director unafraid to turn a museum upside down.
Photo by Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images
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