Mouna Ayoub is Auctioning 126 Pieces of Dior Haute Couture

After John Galliano paraded a Christian Dior haute couture show inspired by Paris‘ homeless population back in 2000, riot police were called in to fend off a small but vocal group of activists incensed by the so-called hobo collection.

But among its arch defenders at the time were luxury titan and Dior owner Bernard Arnault, who declared that “a gust of genius blew through the room,” and couture fiend Mouna Ayoub, who promptly bought 10 pieces from a collection she’s described as one of her favorites of all time.

“I was actually on the news because I was one of the rarest, if not the only one, who liked it,” Ayoub related. “I think they are museum pieces.”

Six ensembles and a pair of boots from that infamous collection are among 126 Dior couture items she will part with at a Maurice Auction sale on Jan. 29 at the Bristol hotel in Paris.

The French socialite and businesswoman has amassed a unique Dior wardrobe that spanned five different couturiers: Marc Bohan, Gianfranco Ferré, Galliano, Raf Simons and Maria Grazia Chiuri. 

“My objective as a collector was always to support this dying art and to continuously make sure that the ateliers can perform all kind of visions seen by different designers,” she said in an interview over Teams, wearing a navy and white newsprint sweater by Chiuri that was inspired by the Galliano era.

Ayoub met all the designers who created her Dior couture, save for Simons. But Galliano remains her favorite, bar none.

“I loved his Dior fashion shows because they were dramatic.…We were entertained and we were educated about fashion and history at the same time,” she said. “I was always prepared to be mesmerized, you know, because he created worlds, and not just a fashion show. He turned the couture show into a story.”

She also lauded his imagination and deep knowledge of fashion history and dressmaking, once crossing paths with him in the bowels of the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, where he was inspecting dresses by Madeleine Vionnet, one of his enduring inspirations.

“He had a vision of beauty and construction and elegance that nobody before him had. For me, he is a genius,” she enthused. “He created a mix of beauty, emotion and chaos but at the same time, a meticulous construction that I noticed every time I went to try on a dress.”

A look from Galliano’s “Mata Hari” couture collection from winter 1997 is estimated to fetch between 40,000 euros and 60,000 euros, while a painted silk evening gown from the controversial hobo collection could bring in between 80,000 euros and 120,000 euros.

Several dresses by Bohan, Ferré, Simons and Chiuri are estimated to fetch anywhere from 4,500 euros to 10,000 euros. Many have been preserved in near-perfect condition.

“I don’t think I will wear those pieces anymore, so I’m parting with them because they don’t fit me,” Ayoub said. “It’s about time somebody else enjoys them. Some have been sitting in boxes for decades.”

Ayoub has already auctioned off hundreds of couture creations by Chanel and Jean Paul Gaultier, and she’s parting ways with many, but not all of, her Dior collection for the same reason.

That’s not weaned herself off her couture habit.

Ayoub said she is considering buying a piece from Dior’s current designer, Jonathan Anderson, who will make his haute couture debut for the house later this month.

“I hope that he will design a beautiful collection,” she said, noting she typically wears a couture gown for the opening of the Cannes Film Festival.

Maurice Auction, based in Paris, joins forces twice a year with London-based Kerry Taylor Auctions to host fashion and haute couture sales, and has so far set several world records, including two from Ayoub auctions.