It would not be inaccurate to frame 2023 as a bumper year for the house of Chanel. In May, the late Karl Lagerfeld, its previous creative incumbent, was honoured at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute in New York, its flagship exhibition dedicated to his career — which included a 36 year stint at the Parisian titan.
In September, the V&A unveiled Gabrielle Chanel, Fashion Manifesto, an exhaustive retrospective charting the creative life of its enigmatic founder. In record breaking style, it was already mostly sold out before it even opened. The crux of the exhibition is the world renowned tropes Chanel created, and endlessly reinterpreted: the tweed jacket, the strings of pearls, the little black dress, the two-tone slingback pumps and the quilted handbag.
To say that Chanel’s artistic director Virginie Viard went into today’s spring summer 24 show in rude health is a modest assertion. Chanel’s latest 2022 sales report showed a 17 per cent increase on the previous year.
At the Grand Palais Éphémère, Viard unveiled her new vision and impressed anew those laid-in-stone house codes. The set and collection took its cue from the modernist Villa Noailles, built in 1923, in Hyères, where Chanel supports the annual October International festival of fashion, photography and accessories, a competition tasked with offering practical assistance to young talent. Imagery of the Provençal hills surrounded the show space, guests — including Paris Hilton and Usher (two of the week’s most prominent show attendees) were compartilised into a square maze, with giant ebullient pink, peach and white flowering camellias (the house floral) beaming down on them. Madame Chanel herself moved in the same creative circle as the Villa’s charismatic patrons Marie-Laure and Charles de Noailles.
A simple blue swimsuit was paired with a tweed cape, worn half draped on one shoulder; a blue red and white check jacket paired with blouson black shorts and cream silk pleated blouse as well as loose double denim jean and top look gave an impression of a relaxed riviera mood. An open shirt and boxer short set was paired with a blue crystal encrusted halter top; shoes were simple, straightforward, black thong flip flops, white ballet pumps and black flat slingbacks as well as sprinklings of glitz on sparkly ballet pumps with a black bow atop. The Chanel emblem was front and centre on a black and white striped vest top, belts spelling out Coco underscored that key founder message.
Gigi Hadid made her only Paris Fashion Week appearance in a shimmering wide legged trouser look; elegance came from sheer black gowns, fun from popping camellia and floral print looks. Viard’s Chanel is very much still blossoming.
