OMA / shohei shigematsu designs dior exhibition as architectural dreamscape in seoul

dior storytelling through OMA’s architectural lens

At Seoul’s Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP), a vast, column-free volume becomes a stage for the OMA-designed exhibition, Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams. Led by Shohei Shigematsu, this latest iteration of Dior’s traveling retrospective breaks from the format of boxed gallery rooms to orbit around a central void inspired by Korean hanok courtyard logic. Here, structure is narrative, and fashion becomes spatial.

The heart of the exhibition is inside ‘The Garden’ — a monumental reinterpretation of the traditional Korean moon jar. Towering at twelve meters tall, this immersive space is lined with hanji trees, butterflies, and blossoms designed by artist Hyun Joo Kim. OMA’s choice to center the experience around a sculptural void draws not just from Korean vessels, but from the philosophical idea of holding everything — history, air, light, and time.

tradition reworked through Korean materials and craft

Rather than merely decorating the halls of Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) with Korean motifs, the team at OMA embeds cultural references into the structure itself. Jogakbo patchwork techniques inspire the sinuous textile ribbon of ‘Dior Legacy,’ while ‘Lady Dior’ leans into the red-lacquered geometries of Korean cabinetry. Across the exhibition, OMA fuses Dior’s atelier detail with Seoul’s vernacular materiality, offering both homage and translation.

The team at Colorama flips the usual linear logic into a chromatic wheel, surrounding visitors with primary hues at the center and diffused shades beyond. Objects are mounted to mirrored louvers, reflecting each other into kaleidoscopic infinity. It’s one of several rooms where OMA’s spatial tricks — mirrors, cables, scrims — disassemble the fashion vitrine into a theater of form.

a mirrored infinity of atelier toiles in seoul

In ‘The Dior Ateliers,’ the ghostly white toiles — usually kept behind the seams — hang like spectral garments. Suspended from the ceiling and mirrored on all sides, they dissolve into an endless field of dressmaking dreams. The effect recalls Seoul’s own aesthetic of quiet intensity: craftsmanship made cosmic.

The show opens with ’30 Avenue Montaigne,’ where Dior’s original Paris atelier is reimagined through translucent scrims printed with historic photographs. OMA uses light and layering to evoke memory, turning the familiar facade into a cinematic dissolve of fashion history.

Instead of chronological order, OMA organizes the entire exhibition like a procession through varied spatial moods. Rooms alternate between light and dark, curved and straight, intimate and expansive, mirroring Dior’s decades-long oscillation between classicism and reinvention.

Toward the finale, ‘The Dior Ball’ transforms the Maison’s famed staircase into a twisting sculpture populated by gowns. Nearby, ‘Stars in Dior’ replaces conventional spotlights with a shimmering grid of metal cables that catch and scatter light like a constellation — an architecture of stardom and ephemerality.

The J’Adore room is pure theatrical flourish: a golden hall of mirrors, larger-than-life video screens, and glowing perfume bottles created in collaboration with artist Jean-Michel Othoniel. OMA closes the experience not with quiet reflection, but with luminous opulence — fitting for a brand that dreams big, and designs even bigger.

1/7

project info:

exhibition name: Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams

scenography designer: OMA New York | @omanewyork

museum: Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) | @ddp_seoul

address: 281 Eulji-ro, Jung District, Seoul, South Korea

on view: April 19th — July 13th, 2025

photography: © Kyungsub Shin

OMA New York:
partner: Shohei Shigematsu
associate: Christy Cheng
project architect: Caroline Corbett
team: Baiyang Kong, Timothy Ho, Seong Hyun Lee, Idil Derman, Gianlorenzo Bertolero

client: Christian Dior Couture

curator: Florence Müller
contributing artists: Seon Ghi Bahk, Lee Bul, Ha Chong-Hyun, Kyungwoo Chun, Lee Hun Chung, Gigisue Gimhongsok, René Gruau, Jungpyo Hong, Choi Jeong Hwa, Ran Hwang, Eva Jospin, Hee Won Kim, Hyunjoo Kim, Minjung Kim, Lee Kun-Yong, Woo Kukwon, Oh You Kyeong, Jukhee Kwon, Jia Lee, Jungin Lee, Kwangho Lee, Jay Sae Jung Oh, Jean-Michel Othoniel, Soo Sunny Park, Wonmin Park, Suki Seokyeong, Lee Ufan, Yesum Yoon, Zadie Xa

Hanji artist: Hyun Joo Kim
hats, headpieces: Stephen Jones, Julia Wigley
production, construction: KESSON, with the support of Changjo, LS Neotech, Chunghye, Lucea, Woo-young, Intro, Daemyung Glass, Hanil Carpet, Bowoo Engineering
lighting design: Lightemotion
audiovisual design / hardware: The Gream, Creum
art consulting, galeries: HM Conseil, Thaddaeus Ropac, Kukje Gallery
graphic design: Anamorphée
textile, artworks mounting, colorama conception, production: Agence Alighieri, Solutions Plus Korea, Cardinal Art Solutions, Hypergalaxy

translation: Mot.tiff inside
textile, artworks mounting: Colorama Conception and Production Agence Alighieri, Solutions Plus Korea, Cardinal Art Solutions, Hypergalaxy
art handling, transport: André Chenue, Dongbu Art Co., Ltd., DSV Air & Sea, Gamblin, L&B Fine Art, LP ART, Masterpiece Intl, PRODEX Aerospace Solutions
metal fabrication: O2 Metal
wood fabrication: Yulsan D&C
fabrics, Jogakbo: Easement
exhibition prints: PICTO
signage: Andwe
exhibition operations: AMHERST Inc.
venue: Seoul Design Foundation, Team at Dongdaemun Design Plaza