From Andean Highlands to Dior: Cross-Cultural Pollination and the Representation of Latin America in Western Fashion

In 2005, designer John Galliano paid tribute to the centenary of Christian Dior’s birth with a haute couture collection described by Vogue as a journey from the fin-de-siècle influences reflected in Dior’s mother’s gowns to the emergence of his celebrated New Look. According to the magazine, the collection followed a consistent chromatic narrative, which was abruptly disrupted by a series of brightly colored dresses evocative of Peruvian vernacular female attire. This moment exemplifies a broader phenomenon: the representation of Latin America within the Western fashion industry’s long-standing tradition of adopting and reinventing itself through cultural references drawn from across the globe. At first glance, such gestures might be interpreted as cases of cultural appropriation. However, this article argues for a more nuanced analysis. Adopting a historiographical approach, the article explores the roots of vernacular Andean women’s dress and searches for the presence of the region in Dior’s memories, in order to trace connections to Galliano’s collection. These representations are examined as outcomes of a design process shaped by the logic of visual conventions, as theorized by historian Anne Hollander, and situated within a framework of cross-cultural pollination—rather than a deliberate act of appropriation. Ultimately, this analysis highlights the importance of interpreting such fashion fabrications in light of the ethical and aesthetic sensibilities of the time in which they were produced.