Dior's Sheer Delights ...

It took me a long time to warm to John Galliano -- years, in fact. You see, I was at Hubert de Givenchy's retirement show in 1995 and shed tears alongside other reporters backstage with the couturier as he spoke of his final collection as an homage to "my Audrey." Eager to infuse a youthful energy into the label, Givenchy owner LVMH was bringing in Galliano, who promptly upended every notion of what the label was all about -- to someone who worshipped at the altar of fashion's most iconic designer-muse partnership, such a decision amounted to nothing less than sacrilege. Galliano was brash, in-your-face and made no attempt at humility; in other words, he was the anti-Givenchy. His first collection was critically praised but simply didn't sell; less than two years later, Galliano was moved to LVMH sister label Dior. (He was succeeded at Givenchy by Alexander McQueen, then Julien MacDonald, and since 2005 Riccardo Tisci, who has indeed made Givenchy a talked-about label again, though I can only speculate that his rep for being difficult and standoffish will eventually come back to bite him in the ass, especially these days). But back to Galliano, who has found quite the home at Dior. Not unlike Lagerfeld at Chanel, I don't ever envision Galliano leaving this deep-pocket house, where he has honed a razor-sharp skill for infusing modernity and forward thinking with the Dior aesthetic -- and given himself the proper foundation to be as free as he likes with his own label. Still, he is not without his fun at Dior: For his Fall/Winter 09/10 haute-couture collection, Galliano was inspired by a photograph of Monsieur Dior backstage with his models in the mid-1950s, with many of the girls en deshabille. And so Galliano tweaked the concept by sending out his models seemingly half-dressed, sporting cunning sheer slips or -- as seen on Chanel Iman here -- tulle crinolines, revealing sexy vintage-style garters and stockings underneath. I am intrigued by the notion that a starlet will sport such a look on a red carpet and whether it will seem incongruent outside the storied Dior atelier. And in a society that has elevated Dita von Teese and burlesque to a socially acceptable, highly sought-after form of entertainment, can a look like this be far behind? Fourteen years ago I was eager to scoff at Galliano, thinking him a pure example of the titular character in the Emperor's New Clothes. But by riffing on the underpinnings of a Dior dress, displaying reverence, whimsy and artistry at once, Galliano is inspiring us to ask questions not only about fashion but also its place within our culture -- and that's my kind of designer.