Dior has signed on to sponsor the Venice Biennale, which will be dominated by women and nonconforming artists in its next edition.The 59th International Art Exhibition will run from April 23 to Nov. 27 with funding from the French fashion house.

As the first Italian woman to direct the event, Cecilia Alemani is also a friend of Pietro Beccari, chairman and chief executive officer of Christian Dior Couture, perhaps this explains it. This year, the house is partnering with Venetian Heritage, an organization dedicated to restoring and preserving Venice’s cultural treasures, on a fundraising gala.

The event will take place at the Teatro La Fenice on Saturday, the opening day of the Biennale, and will support the restoration of the Ca’ d’Oro Museum on the Grand Canal, which is considered to be the finest surviving example of Venetian Gothic architecture. When I was writing an article about the “Museïfication” of Dior, I was in the clouds