Jeffrey Gibson Explores the Complexities of Loving and Being Loved for Dior Lady Art

Dior Talks

The new series of Dior Talks – hosted by Paris-based journalist Katya Foreman – is dedicated to t ninth edition of Dior Lady Art. Eleven global artists have been invited to transform the iconic Lady Dior handbag into a unique piece of art.

Collaborating with Dior Lady Art for a second consecutive season, artist Jeffrey Gibson, a member of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians and Cherokee descent, returns with a piece inspired by his 2017 punching-bag sculpture “LOVE IS THE DRUG,” themed around the complexities of loving and being loved.

An advocate of artisans, materials, pattern and adornment, the New York-based artist – known for his ultra-colorful works that combine traditional Native American craftsmanship with a bold, almost psychedelic aesthetic – also plays with texts and slogans, embracing the power of speech as he celebrates the forgotten and the marginalized.

Thus, his latest Lady Dior is fully beaded on one side, with the word “Love” repeated three times in a signature LCD-style font, while the other is loaded with over 70 jangling 3D-printed hearts.

“Being a person of color traveling around the world – I’ve lived in London, South Korea, Germany and different states in the United States – I think I’ve really always paid attention to how people dress themselves and adorn themselves,” says the artist. “I’m really interested in different kind of movements, whether it’s feminist movements, LGBTQ movements or Indigenous liberation movements, and the ways that we codify that in how we dress.”

Download the episode to learn more about Jeffrey Gibson’s fascinating universe.

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