I was kindly welcomed by Musée Christian Dior to write a review.
At Granville, in Normandy, not far from the Mont Saint-Michel, the house of Christian Dior’s childhood stands on the cliff, looking out over the Anglo-Normand islands.
In 1906, Christian Dior’s parents purchased this comfortable upper-middle-class house with a conservatory, set in a protective park.
The Villa Les Rhumbs owes its name to the naval term denoting the 32 divisions of the compass rose, a symbol that is incorporated in a mosaic decorating the floor of one of the entrances to the house.
Before he tailored dresses, Christian Dior learned how to prune the roses that his mother planted. Les Rhumbs Villa, with its name derived from the compass rose, gave Madeleine Dior a crazy idea: the roses in her garden would look out to sea. This is botanically risky, but the challenge of it reveals considerable panache and a desire to surprise. Roses selected from sale catalogues at that time would allow all manner of fancies. From the early nineteenth century, new horticultural varieties had emerged, cultivated by French and British breeders. The most popular were the tea roses, offering an infinite range of vigorous, flowering, and climbing plants. Madeleine Dior understood the landscaping potential of these roses, which she arranged in clusters, borders, and over the arches along the wall that lines the coastal path.
Christian Dior was particularly fond of it. In his autobiography, entitled Christian Dior et moi (Christian Dior and me), he writes, “The house where I grew up… I have the most tender, wonderful memories of it. What can I say? My life, my style owe almost everything to its situation and architecture.”
In 1932, soon after the death of Madeleine Dior, when his industrialist father was ruined by the Depression, the property was put up for sale. It was bought by the municipality of Granville, and its gardens were opened to the public in 1938.
In 1997, the villa became the Musée Christian Dior, the only establishment with ‘Musée de France’ status devoted entirely to a couturier.
The house and gardens continue to provide inspiration for the brand to this day. Francois Demachy, Dior’s Perfumer-Designer, poetically describes the scent of the Granville perfume from the Private Collection: “It is a fresh, invigorating, aromatic fragrance, like the wind that blows through Granville, and the waves that break against the cliff upon which Christian Dior’s childhood home is built.”
A visit to the museum is quite the experience and the Haute Couture creations displayed across all three floors of the charming villa are stunning masterpieces. Whether you know anything about fashion or Dior, this truly beautiful place, stuffed with magnificent human creations makes for a magical day out for anyone visiting this part of France.
During your visit, you can also sit on the trace of the cafe La Rose du Rocher and enjoy delighted dishes on the menu with the beautiful view and smell of roses.
PRACTICAL INFORMATIONS :
Museum:
Full price: €10. Concessions: €7 (groups of 12 or more, disabled visitors, job-seekers and students). Free for children under 12 years old.
From April 29th to November 5th 2023
Until September 30 : every day from 10:00 to 18:30. Last admission at 17:45.
From October 1st : Tuesday to Sunday and every day during French school holidays, 10:00 to 12:30 and 14:00 to 18:00.
Last admission at 11:45 and 17:15.
Garden:
Free access, open all year.
Opening hours :
From November to February from 9 am to 5 pm
March and October from 9 am to 6 pm
April, May and September from 9 am to 8 pm
June to August from 9 am to 9 pm
Ebru van der Ploeg 