The Dior Summer 2022 menswear show has just ended, giving us our first look at Kim Jones and Travis Scott's linkup for the Parisian luxury fashion house, appropriately dubbed "Cactus Jack Dior."
The invite sent out prior to the blockbuster show explained that the collection was a celebration of two giants coming together — and so it was, in every way. French luxury design and American streetwear influences blended seamlessly, highlighting that this collaboration was not Dior and Kim Jones’ first rodeo.
Like Spring 2022's sacai collection, Summer 2022 sees Jones moving beyond his previous collections with fine artists, enlisting the aid of every stylish person in his circle. That doesn't mean the departure of painterly cues entirely, though — Summer 2022 includes hand-painted shirts courtesy of George Condo, soon to be auctioned off to benefit Scott's Cactus Jack Foundation.
The set design was, predictably, immaculate and exactly what you’d expect of a Travis Scott fashion show. Huge cacti fought for attention among oversized roses, a desert landscape, and the pink blush of a setting sun across the Wild West’s horizon.
Interestingly, Dior made a point to note that when Christian Dior’s first eponymous collection was unveiled in 1947, the designer traveled to America and stopped off at a surprising location to show his pieces — Texas, famously Travis Scott’s home state — indicating that the connection to La Flare goes deeper than the hottest luxury brand collaborating with the hottest celebrity artist.
Travis Scott’s influence was evident throughout the collection: the earthy color palette (Dior called it "sun-bleached") closely mirrored La Flame’s previous collections of merch and collaborations with Jordan Brand, for instance. Travis is no stranger to the world of Dior, of course, having helped Jones and his team unveil the highly sought-after Dior x Nike Air Jordan 1 in late 2019. This time, Scott is helping Dior debut a new skate-inspired sneaker inspired by '90s silhouettes, the B713.
Because this was a Kim Jones collection, there were plenty of tailored elements, including asymnmetrical, lapelless blazers and many louche slacks cut with flared, slit hems. Tour merchandise — a cornerstone of Scott's empire — was referenced in washed-out, paint-splashed T-shirts, while flared track pants and denim layers riffed on the sportswear and workwear that fills Scott's own wardrobe. Elsewhere, Scott's hand-drawn take on the Dior logotype mingled with Dior's Oblique monogram reworked to spell out "Jack," driving home the co-creative direction at play.
In addition to his signature touch on the garments, Travis Scott lent the show some of his musical genii, as the show seemed to debut a new song, though that was not explicitly communicated or confirmed immediately following the show's end.
