How John Galliano was self-inspired to design Miley Cyrus’ Grammys safety pin dress

A common and much applauded coup is to choose a vintage design on the red carpet. One of the most recent was the Pierre Balmain that Elle Fanning wore to the Golden Globes in early January, while Zendaya is the real benchmark when it comes to recovering dresses from previous eras for premieres and awards ceremonies. At first glance, that is what Miley Cyrus appeared to be doing at the Grammy Awards, specifically with the look she posed with on the red carpet: a fishnet dress that was actually a design created with 14,000 safety pins (which took 675 hours to make), custom-made for the singer by Maison Margiela, whose creative director John Galliano seems to have been inspired by himself, as the garment is practically the same as one worn by Milla Jovovich in 1997. During the Cannes Film Festival that year, the model and actress chose a transparent Galliano design for Dior with strategic embroidery at the premiere of Luc Besson’s film The Fifth Element, in which she starred alongside Bruce Willis.

It is a more than justified déjà-vu, not only because of the similarities between the two designs, but also because Cyrus has been at the vanguard of bringing Galliano’s name to the present day by wearing several of his vintage designs. She did so especially in 2022, when the artist appeared on several occasions wearing dresses created by the British designer during his time with Dior. At a performance of the musical Chicago, with Pamela Anderson in the cast, she chose an asymmetrical, lingerie-style, leopard-print dress from Galliano’s fall 2000 collection for Dior. Hours later she chose another one of tiny proportions in black, accompanying the image on her Instagram profile with the phrase: “Photo me pronto. I’m in Galliano.”

In addition to wearing designs from his golden age, in August 2023 she commissioned Galliano — now at the helm of Margiela — to create the looks to accompany the release of her single Used To Be Young. For this design — a jumpsuit with certain references to corsair aesthetics — Galliano seemed to take inspiration from another design of his own from his Co-Ed 2023 collection for Maison Margiela, transforming a dress in different shades of blue tulle into a bodysuit.

Cyrus was not, however, the only one who has contributed to bringing Galliano’s name back to fashion. In 2011 Italian Vogue editor Franca Sozzani launched a defense of the British designer: “Look, I understand their point of view. I understand they couldn’t just say, ‘Bad boy! We forgive you! Come back!’ But it’s really a pity. And I will never believe he believed what he said. I think he was drunk and alone in a bar. When people go crazy, they go crazy. It’s a human case; it’s not political or religious. He didn’t kill anyone!” said Sozzani over Galliano’s downfall over an incident in which he was accused of antisemitism.

In 2014 Galliano was back in the news after signing a contract with Margiela. It has taken 10 years, however, for his return to be applauded in unison. The last Maison Margiela Artisanal fashion show, held on January 26 in Paris, was his definitive rise from the ashes. The show was reminiscent of the Dior shows of the 1990s, when Galliano made everything possible.

Elaborate staging, a porcelain doll makeup design officiated by his collaborator Pat MacGrath, a 30-minute short film made by Baz Luhrmann and a host of expectant celebrities: the return of the Briton to the highest echelons of fashion was confirmed. It was a success that has been a long time coming, but perhaps it came at the right time. Not only because enough time has passed since that incident in Paris, but also because fashion also wants to offer a bit of spectacle as a counterpart to the prevailing and sober, quiet luxury. Something — excess — in which Galliano has always been reference point, as he is for all the trends of the early 2000s that are making a comeback today. Who else but himself would Galliano look to for the perfect inspiration?

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