Dior celebrates a passion for color in new book “The Art of Color”

In 1949, the first “Rouge Dior” lipstick established the identity of the House with scarlet lips that expressed a triumphant femininity. The mythic journey through the spectrum continued in 1967 when Dior named Serge Lutens Creative Director for Makeup and Image, beginning 13 years of unbounded creativity. In 1980 Tyen took up the bold exploration of colors, followed by Peter Philips, Creative and Image Director of Dior Makeup since 2014. The new book reveals their creative processes and looks in detail at the iconic shades that have made color an integral part of Dior’s destiny.

“Color has extraordinary power to communicate. With color you can express things that you could not put into words. I think color embodies emotions,” says Peter Philips.

The book is divided into 12 chapters – White, Silver, Nude, Pink, Red, Purple, Blue, Green, Yellow, Gold, Gray, and Black. Dior invited greats from the field of makeup to draw inspiration from the 12 shades to share their creative processes and reveal the rich history of Dior Beauty. The book also features a section on Peter Philips and a timeline, becoming a work of art in itself as it evokes the power of color and its almost mystical impact on the eye…as well as the soul.

“Dior: The Art of Color” juxtaposes different eras and art works to plunge readers into the heart of the bold spectrum that has made Dior a color icon. Painting, literary references, photographs, sketches, sculptures and advertising posters all engage in a rich-hued dialogue, interspersed with interviews with three successive Makeup Creative Directors, Serge Lutens, Tyen and Peter Philips.