The House of Dior was founded by fashion designer Christian DIOR with the participation of Marcel BOUSSAC. Among all the lines created by the couturier, however, we can distinguish three major periods in the style of Christian Dior: the first is marked by the influence of the New Look, nickname given to the very first collection, presented in 1947. The second, which extends from 1950 to 1953, is characterized by less voluptuous curves, where the waist and hips are less marked. The last corresponds to the H line of 1954, where the waist line seems to disappear and where the curves are substantially erased, in an aesthetic reminiscent of the style of the 1920s. When Christian DIOR suddenly died in 1957, young Yves SAINT LAURENT, aged 21,who joined Christian Dior in 1955, takes over the art direction of the Parisian fashion house while Marc BOHAN oversees Dior creations in London and New York from 1958. In 1960, Yves SAINT LAURENT was called up and had to leave his job at Dior. Marc BOHAN took over the entire artistic direction till 1989 and was replaced by Gianfranco FERRE. From 1997 John GALLIANO, provocative and unpredictable dandy, full of humor, not hesitating to stage himself at each closing of his collections, makes his fashion shows for Dior essential and electric till 2011. After the departure of John GALLIANO in March 2011, Dior has no artistic director, and the Belgian Raf SIMONS, formerly worked for Jil SANDER, is announced on April 9, 2012 as the new artistic director. Opposing his predecessor by the minimalism, the first haute couture collection signed Raf SIMONS, although respecting the codes of Dior, receives mixed reviews. On October 22, 2015, Raf SIMONS announced his departure from the House of Dior, after only three years of collaboration with the French brand and will be replaced by Maria Grazia CHIURI in July 2016.