Who Will Take Galliano’s Place at Dior? Four of Our Dream Picks

THEYSKENS, PILATI, ELBAZ, AND TISCI.

You’ve probably heard the story of John Galliano’s fall from grace over the weekend. After being detained by police on Friday for allegedly making anti-Semitic remarks to a couple in a Parisian café, Dior put Galliano on suspension, citing their zero-tolerance policy on racism and anti- Semitism. On Saturday, another woman came forward with accusations of racist remarks. And just yesterday, a video emerged of an intoxicated Galliano, telling patrons at the café  La Perla “I love Hitler” and “People like you would be dead. Your mothers, your forefathers, would all be f—— gassed.” Christian Dior’s CEO, Sidney Toledano, reacting to the events of the weekend, fired Galliano. With Galliano firmly out of the picture, the fashion world quickly turns to the next big question: Who will replace him? We put together a list of possible frontrunners.

Name: Olivier Theyskens
Current Position: Artistic Director for Theory
Credentials: Despite Theyskens’ current, more casual work with Nina Ricci, many will remember his earlier work with House of Rochas, which critics pegged as often extravagant and over-the-top. While Rochas’ demise was said to be due to the fact that Theyskens refused to compromise his vision, his current work seems to reflect a more mature approach to the acceptance of versatility within a label. We’re betting a balance of his penchant for more elaborate, fantastic designs, tempered by his recently matured business understanding, will make him appealing to Dior.

Name: Stefano Pilati
Current Position: Head Designer for Yves Saint Laurent
Credentials: The 46-year-old Milanese native began his career as an intern for Nino Cerruti, and literally worked his way through the ranks of the fashion design business: selling fabric at a textiles company, working as a fabric consultant at Valentino, taking over the ranks as menswear assistant at Armani, becoming assistant designer at Miu Miu, working under Tom Ford at Yves Saint Laurent, and eventually surprising critics by graduating to Head Designer for everything under the Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche label after Tom Ford’s departure. More recently, rumors have dogged the designer that he will be replaced. As a master of fabric innovations and a fan of the voluminous silhouettes often seen at Dior, Pilati could add a texture to the Dior aesthetic without stripping it of its signature personality.

Name: Alber Elbaz
Current Position: Artistic Director for Lanvin
Credentials: Elbaz moved to New York after studying design in Israel, and cut his teeth as a designer for a mother-of-the-bride collection. From those humble beginnings, he went on to work under Yves Saint Laurent and has spent the last ten years at Lanvin, creating a feminine, wearable silhouette that has made him the darling of celebrities like Chloë Sevigny, Kate Moss, and Sophia Coppola. His softer approach to design would definitely be a departure for Dior, but considering their current position following Galliano’s debacle, that shift may be seen as a positive.
 
Name: Riccardo Tisci
Current Position: Creative Director for Givenchy
Credentials: The youngest of the bunch at 36, Tisci is a graduate from Central St. Martin’s in London, where he worked with various companies before joining Givenchy in 2005. It’s rumored that Tisci is a favorite to take the position at Dior. And it is no doubt that his influence would bring a darker, more gothic inspiration to the label.