Artist Zadie Xa reinterprets the Lady Dior through the virtuoso craft of Najeonchilgi

Dior Lady Art

Welcome to the Dior Talks podcast series dedicated to the eighth edition of Dior Lady Art, hosted by Paris-based journalist Katya Foreman. For this highly-anticipated edition, 12 artists from around the world were invited to transform the iconic Lady Dior handbag into a unique work of art.

In this episode, we enter the universe of London-based Canadian-Korean artist Zadie Xa, a transporting, enigmatic world informed by notions of self and Xa’s experiences within the Korean diaspora. Influences range from folklore, speculative fiction and systems of power to the supernatural, ancient religions and the climate crisis. For her multi-media installations, the artist often incorporates richly patterned garments, mixing streetwear codes with nods to ceremonial wear and ancestral traditions.

For Dior Lady Art, Xa dreamed up four bags featuring vibrant geometric patchworks inspired by pojagi, a traditional Korean wrapping cloth, as well as ornate mother-of-pearl applications that pay tribute to the ancient Korean handicraft of najeonchilgi. Rings of mother-of-pearl edged with flames give onto scenes depicting animals often found in her work, such as the fox, the orca and the seagull, here holding a small planet in its beak.

Tune in to the episode to hear more about the artist’s colorful and layered Dior Lady Art creations.