Christian Dior by John Galliano, Spring/Summer 2003: Origami Jacket

Taken directly from Dior’s Spring 2003 runway this extraordinary jacket exemplifies Galliano’s gift for merging cultural inspiration with couture craftsmanship. Constructed in lustrous red silk with a bold, Chinese-inspired print (which was later translated into the ready to wear collections), its architectural origami folds create sculptural sleeves and a commanding silhouette. A discreet gold hook-and-eye fastening at the front completes the piece with understated refinement.

The design finds its origins in Galliano’s three-week journey through China and Japan in 2002. Immersed in the region’s traditions, art, and history, he returned to Paris with a vision that would shape one of Dior’s most theatrical and celebrated collections. Spring 2003 brought together Eastern and Western references with unapologetic vibrancy: cascading fabrics, amplified volumes, and palettes alive with colour. On the runway, Chinese opera costumes and Japanese kimono forms met Dior’s heritage of elegance, resulting in a breathtaking cultural dialogue.

The show itself was staged as pure spectacle. Sword-twirling monks and Chinese acrobats heightened the drama, lending an operatic intensity to a collection already brimming with grandeur. Against this backdrop, the origami jacket stood out as a testament to Galliano’s ability to blend theatre with design, drawing as much on performance and storytelling as on tailoring.

This jacket also speaks to Galliano’s broader fascination with Asia, a theme that echoed through his career and was later recognised in the landmark 2015 exhibition China: Through the Looking Glass at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Many of his creations were included in that historic show, highlighting the depth of his engagement with cultural references and his ability to reinterpret them into wearable art that remained unmistakably Dior.

More than a garment, this piece represents a dialogue between tradition and innovation, reverence and reinvention. Its origami folds evoke the discipline and precision of Japanese craft, while its bold red silk and Chinese-inspired motifs recall the richness of Eastern pageantry. To wear or collect it is to own a fragment of one of Galliano’s most inspired moments at Dior — a true work of fashion history, equal parts spectacle, craftsmanship, and artistry.