BEAUTY

Dior: The Perfumes

Original ink and gouache illustration for Eau Sauvage

How did Christian Dior channel his careers as an art gallerist and couturier into a perfume empire? Dior: The Perfumes (Rizzoli), a new book by scent critic and curator Chandler Burr, connects the dots, providing insight into the designer’s early life, career, and relationship to perfume. The tome pairs each Dior fragrance—from the first, 1947’s Miss Dior, to the latest, La Collection Privée Christian Dior—with images of the accompanying runway collections, ads, and inspirations, drawing a line between the designer’s visual and olfactory aesthetics. Artful garden photos by Terri Weifenbach introduce each fragrance, for as the book explains, “It is impossible to understand the perfumes of Christian Dior without understanding that his life, from his earliest memories, was lived in a garden.”

Dior: The Perfumes by Chandler Burr, $115, rizzolibooks.com.

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Jasminum grandiflorum, a key note in Miss Dior. Photograph by Terri Weifenbach, 2013 © Terri Weifenbach

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Christian Dior’s first fragrance, Miss Dior. © Philippe Schlienger

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The façade of 30 avenue Montaigne, circa 1947. Collection Christian Dior Parfums

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Christian Dior’s fourth perfume, Diorissimo, 1956. Limited-edition Baccarat crystal bottle

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Diorling evening dress, Spring-Summer 1963 Haute Couture collection. Collection Christian Dior Parfums

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Advertisement for Eau Fraîche, 1971. Collection Christian Dior Parfums. 7 –

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Original ink and gouache illustration for Eau Sauvage, 1978 © Sarl René Gruau

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Press photograph for Diorella, 1972. Collection Christian Dior Parfums

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Press photograph for Jules, 1980. Collection Christian Dior Parfums

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Advertising image for Poison, 1985. Photograph by Tyen © Tyen.

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Advertising image for Dior Addict, 2014. Photograph by Ryan McGinley