SATURDAY, MAY 13, 2017

to wear Dior. For one, it's expensive and, two, it's really well made and it's always something that helps you express your femininity in the highest level." The singer stayed for half an hour, leaving immediately after the show and leaving singing duties to Beyonce's younger sister Solange Knowles, 30, who played a rousing set at the after-show party. Other stars at the glitzy bash included Oscar-winning "Room" and "King Kong" actress Brie Larson, Beyonce's former Destiny's Child bandmate Kelly Rowlands, singer Nick Jonas and British socialite Lady Victoria Hervey. Long derided for flashiness or fad- ed grunge, Los Angeles is increasingly being described as an upcoming center of global fashion. Saint Laurent showcased its autumn-winter men's collection and part of its women's range in Hollywood last year while Louis Vuitton presented its cruise col- lection in the city and Burberry presented at the Griffith Observatory in 2015. Guests for the Dior show boarded shuttles from Beverly Hills and Santa Monica to the wilderness of the Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve, around an hour away.

'Rich with culture' The meadows there were used from the 1920s to 1950s for filming Westerns and other movies, including "Gone with the Wind" (1939), "They Died with Their Boots On" (1941) and "Adventures of Don Juan" (1948). "I think it was beautiful. It was really inspiring and it felt rich with culture and texture and some- what other-worldliness," said Oscar-winning South African actress Theron, 41, who currently stars in high-octane car movie "The Fate of the Furious." "It was really beautiful yet super femi- nine. I loved that it had some real weight to it. It felt like it was layered with many complexities. It was a really beautiful job." The show came with the Christian Dior Couture brand about to be taken over in a $13.1 billion deal by French luxury goods con- glomerate LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton. Solange Knowles performs at the after party during the first cruise collection by Maria Grazia Chiuri for Dior show in the Upper LVMH already owns Parfums Christian Dior and the transac- Las Virgenes Canyon, Calabasas, California. tion, set to go through in June, would simplify its relationship with the company, handing it control of the haute couture, leather, men's and women's ready-to-wear and shoe businesses. "In terms of having the plant growing, we have the roots, and we want the tree to continue growing and have nice leaves and flowers," Sidney Toledo, Dior's chief executive since 1998 said. "This is why any time, whatever we do-the collections, the pre- sentations, the people together-has to be positive for the growth of the company, not only short term but long term." — AFP

Models walk the runway during the first cruise collection by Maria Grazia Chiuri for Dior show.