MARCELINA SANTIAGO GONZÁLEZ, FRANCISCA GONZÁLEZ GARCÍA, IRMA SILVA VÁSQUEZ, ISABEL GONZÁLEZ SILVA, VICTORIA SANTIAGO GARCÍA © XIMENA DEL VALLE

The thread of excellence

The Dior cruise 2024 collection, presented in Mexico, celebrates the plurality and richness of local craftsmanship. Virtuoso skills bridging heritage and modernity offer a marvellous panorama of Mexican traditions. A journey from culture to couture in the Rocinante atelier. By Lucie Alexandre.

DIOR PIECE © XIMENA DEL VALLE

In the hills of Oaxaca, surrounded by nature, generations of women, residents of “the village of rain”, embroider in unison. With unrivalled synchronicity, they count, aloud or silently, the number of stitches that will compose their work. Not a single more, not one less: just the right amount to produce identical squares, almost instinctively. With the landscape as their atelier, they walk and turn to the beat of mimetic choreography celebrating the power of community and the beauty of the gesture. Rhythm, felt and experienced collectively, is one of the essential tenets of their art. This extremely precise and precious dance of needles embodies all the virtuosity of their savoir-faire.

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“Embroidery is a way of expressing and representing ideas, ways of seeing life through a textile that’s worn by someone: it’s a form of individual communication, a vector of diversity.”

– Narcy Areli Morales

Motivated by a desire to showcase the cultural riches of this diverse region, Narcy Areli Morales, the daughter of a fashion designer, founded Rocinante in 2012. Since then, she has collaborated with a number of local artisans to pay tribute to Oaxaca’s time-honoured heritage. For her, as for her sister embroiderers, textiles are a means of expression, a “vehicle of dreams”, as Christian Dior declared. Fine, delicate fabric conveys a way of looking at life. The motifs symbolized on traditional garments become magnificent paintings. Fauna is placed on the chest, flora on the sleeves, with singular attention paid to the symmetry of placements on either side of the body. Represented by geometric shapes, birds, plants and other natural elements populate these exceptional pieces. Each creation evokes a piece of history, both collective and individual, fusing the intersecting perspectives of maker and wearer.

IRMA SILVA VÁSQUEZ © XIMENA DEL VALLE

“For me, the house of Dior represents the dream of a designer who succeeded in connecting with the whole world. Working with them on this collaboration was a very special moment for all of us. We’re grateful because, through Dior’s prism, the world will know what’s being done in a corner of southern Mexico.”

— Narcy Areli Morales

DIOR PIECE © XIMENA DEL VALLE

For the Dior cruise 2024 show, Narcy Areli Morales oversaw the creation and production of an embroidery known as pepenado fruncido, which blossomed over jackets, shirts and skirts. Produced by a community made up exclusively of Mixtec women – located in San Lucas Redención, San Pablo Tijaltepec, Tlaxiaco, Oaxaca – this craft constitutes a daily endeavour requiring patience and finesse. The technique is often based on a cotton fabric known as manta, onto which the artisans sew cotton threads, taking care to fabricate a double-faced work. Line by line, stitch by stitch, orchids, clovers, an eye in the sky or a mountain emerged on pieces by Maria Grazia Chiuri. On this occasion, the fabric was also pleated by hand, resulting in an absolutely unique look. An ode to transmission, sharing and passion.

The thread of excellence

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