Gisela Colón Celebrates the Splendor of Ancient Egypt Through the Lady Dio

Dior Lady Art

Welcome to the Dior Talks podcast series themed around the sixth edition of Dior Lady Art and hosted by Paris-based journalist Katya Foreman. For this year’s event, 12 artists from around the world have participated in a game of metamorphosis by rendering the iconic Lady Dior handbag as a unique piece of art.

Returning to the Dior Lady Art series for her second consecutive turn, LA-based artist Gisela Colón transforms the Lady Dior handbag into an exceptional work celebrating the splendor of ancient Egypt.

The artist’s starting point was a monumental sculpture she created for the Forever is Now contemporary art exhibition held at the Giza Plateau this fall, organized by Art D’Égypte. Entitled Eternity Now and measuring 30 feet in length and eight feet in height, the spectacular piece was positioned at the foot of the Great Sphinx.

Crafted from embossed gold metallized leather inspired by the rich gold cross-hatching pattern on King Tutankhamun’s sarcophagus, her mesmerizing Lady Dior Egypt bag boasts as its centerpiece an Eye of Horus carved from a blood-red garnet surrounded by rings of lapis lazuli, carnelian and turquoise. These emulate the curved rows of gemstones found on the sarcophagus’ gold chest plate.

“Unearthed from its storied past, this antique treasure is metaphorically rediscovered as a contemporary talismanic jewel for our present time,” says Colón who also sought to channel the “feminized energy” of powerful female pharaohs such as Hatshepsut, Nefertiti and Cleopatra into the bag.

She cites among influences the current work of Maria Grazia Chiuri at Dior bringing to the forefront female power and feminism as well as Monsieur Dior and his fascination for the magical world of tarot, fortune readings, and the divination of the future through planetary activity and lucky stars.

Concludes Colón: “In a nod to the powerful forces of the cosmos, the Lady Dior Egypt bag harbors the mystique of the fortuneteller’s crystal oculus, embodying this magical celestial energy.”