Chanel, the luxury book

Chanel Luxe, by François Baudot and François Aveline, éditions Assouline, traces the history of the most famous French fashion house. It's a beautiful item and would make for a nice Christmas present ! But you will have to be patient because it's already out of stock.

Beautiful Chanel picture

Chanel Fall-Winter 2011/2012 Haute Couture

Only Chanel can do that: reproduce the Place Vendôme in Le Grand Palais in Paris... beautiful setting and amazing collection...

FALL-WINTER 2011/2012 HAUTE COUTURE

Grand Palais, Paris, July 5th

Photos: Olivier Saillant

Chanel Paris - Byzance: Istancool

Chanel Fall 2011

GIRLS WHO ARE BOYS
WHO LIKE BOYS TO BE GIRLS
WHO DO BOYS LIKE THEY'RE GIRLS
WHO DO GIRLS LIKE THEY'RE BOYS
ALWAYS SHOULD BE SOMEONE YOU REALLY LOVE... at Chanel Fall 2011...

The Oscar goes to... the fuming decor! I am a fan!

INVITATION DU DÉFILÉ HAUTE COUTURE PRINTEMPS-ÉTÉ 2011

History of Fashion: round 2 at the Musée des Arts décoratifs, in Paris

On the 10th October 2010, the exhibition "Histoire idéale de la mode contemporaine vol 1: 70 - 80" at the Musée des Arts décoratifs in Paris closed its doors. Last week opened the second round and it focuses on fashion from 1990 to the years 2000.

It all started with Olivier's Saillard's (fashion historian and expert) book entitled "Histoire idéale de la mode contemporaine". This amazingly rich book draws on 30 years of fashion innovations and moments that have changed the way we think fashion. From this book, two shows were born. The first one featured wardrobes from the 70’s and 80's and this second round rather emphasises the changes of fashion from 90's to the 2000's. 

But the main difference between the book and this show is that, it doesn't follow a chronological order but rather regroups fashion designers according to their influences and style. From independent minimalism to the “Japanese and British schools”, from the position of businessman-designer to the contemporary or performance artist, Bernadette Caille, the second curator of the exhibition, and Olivier Saillard reveal that fashion in itself doesn't exist. They have rather intelligently regrouped fashion designers according to their common styles or influences. 

Martin Margiela

The show opens with one of the biggest innovative schools of the 2000's, the Belgian designers, a group which includes: the mysterious Martin Margiela (one remembers the exhibition which took place at Somerset House in London - see my post: http://artisnotdead.blogspot.com/2010/06/maison-martin-margiela-20-exhibition.html), Veronique Branquinho, Ann Demeulemeester, Veronique Leroy, Dries Van Noten. Facing this section is "the Japanese school" featuring: Yohji Yamamoto, Comme des garçons, Issey Miyake, Junya Watanabe.

 John Galliano for Dior

The first floor of the exhibition showcases fashion designers who go beyond fashion and act more as performance artists or contemporary artists. I am a huge fan of these designers mostly because they are advocate of innovation. I am referring to Hussein Chalayan, Alexander McQueen and Viktor&Rolf. 

Later, a window dedicated to John Galliano for Dior and his own brand, expresses the fact that fashion is also about techniques, craft, and savoir-faire.  It also highlights that fashion becomes intertwined with super powerful luxury groups which recalls the earlier amazing white, sexy Gucci dress by Tom Ford, the archetype of the designer slash business man, presented alongside D&G's bustier once worn by superstar, Madonna.Vivienne Westwood is highly praised as well with her own window.

Vivienne Westwood

Karl Lagerfeld, Christian Lacroix and Jean-Paul Gaultier have all in common their mastering of Haute Couture. Amongst the beautiful outfits of the each window of this room, the parrots inspired outfit by JPG, or the blouse inspired by Coco Chanel's screen (originally located in her flat Rue Cambon), by Karl Lagerfeld, reveal that these designers are the only ones reaching fashion excellence.

Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel

At this stage, we've already reached the climax of the exhibition but cleverly, it ends with two windows dedicated to Nicolas Ghesquiere from Balenciaga and Alber Elbaz from Lanvin which highlight the best examples of regeneration of sleeping fashion houses. Both designers are now famous for reviving Balenciaga and Lanvin. This process seems fruitful for big luxury groups such as PPR or LVMH but the work of these designers should rather be interpreted as luxury laboratories. I wonder whether the same magic will happen to Madeleine Vionnet.

Nicolas Ghesquiere for Balenciaga

Christian Lacroix

With fashion coming from Japan or Belgium, international fashion designers working for French brands, it is interesting to note that geography might have an influence on fashion. It also recalls that France is no longer the centre for fashion creativity: cities like New York, London or Sao Paulo might be the fashion centres today. I personally think that Paris is late and as Anna Wintour suggested a few months ago (highlighted by Loic Prigent in its documentary), Paris should favour younger designers, but that’s another question... maybe the next round of these exhibitions.

 Jean-Paul Gaultier 

This exhibition has been sponsored by Reebok

More info on: www.lesartsdecoratifs.fr

Yves Saint Laurent on Coco Chanel, 1968

« Il est flatté que Mlle Chanel le déclare son successeur. Non, il ne la copie pas. Il est jeune, lui. Il vit avec son temps. Il va en boîte. Et n’a pas atteint son niveau d’excellence. : le tailleur Chanel est un classique comme le costume Louis XV. Au musée, la vieille… »

Skiing with Chanel...

Vanessa Paradis and Chanel: a long-lasting love story

The charismatic and very talented singer and actress Vanessa Paradis is featured in the new Chanel ads for the brand-new line of Cocoon bags. But it’s not the first time that Vanessa partners with Chanel. In 1991 she appeared in the beautiful ad (see below) for the fragrance entitled Coco, she later was the face for the New Mademoiselle (1995) and Ligne Cambon (2004) bags ads. In 2010, she sings and models in the Rouge Coco lipstick commercial.

Her friendship with Karl Lagerfeld is the key to these collaborations. In 2004 she said: "Karl is a gentleman. His work, his kindness, and his respect for people...everything in him seduces me. In addition, he smells so nice !"

I personally have a lot of respect and admiration for her, since she drives her career on her own (without her husband's help) and she always explores different roles, sounds and situations, and this is how you can judge if someone's got talent. She does !

Chanel Fall 2010: very serious and very faux-fur

When I first saw the Chanel Fall 2010 Collection, I found myself surprised. Mixed feelings were going through my mind: was Karl going mad? But looking at the models, the setting, and the philosophy behind the show, my conclusion is that Karl is once again avant-garde and a pure genius ! This show was a statement.

“Global warming is the issue of our times. Fashion has to address it,” Lagerfeld said. Is that why a huge iceberg was set up in a chilled Grand Palais? 

I was also surprised (shocked?) to see that Karl had used fur. But thank God it was fake ! 

“Technical advances are so perfect you can hardly tell fake fur from the real thing. Fake is not chic — we have got a new Chanel tweed to stop copies — but fake fur is.”  Oh Karl, you're so smart !

More info: http://www.chanel.com/

Chanel gets very Buenos Aires in the new ad campaign

Chanel ephemeral tattoos: Ready-to-wear Spring Summer 2010

I loved these...


More info on: http://www.chanel.com/

Chanel Paris Moscou in Moscou - Striking image by Emanuele Scorcelletti

To learn more: www.chanel.com/fashion/8-fashion-trends

Fashion must-have: the Karl bag

From Karl Lagerfeld’s Spring Summer 2009 collection.

To learn more: http://www.karllagerfeld.com

Unlimited Chanel

Chanel has launched a new collection of accessories. Entitled Unlimited, this chic new range of bags shows "Paris, 31, Coco, Chanel...."'s prints inside and outside, which I find really classy.


To learn more: http://www.chanel.com/

Chanel and Lagerfeld in London

Guardian Home Pages

Beehives and big bags at Lagerfeld's first London show: Chanel's top designer pulls in British devotees with a beautiful collection

Hadley Freeman Deputy fashion editor
7 December 2007
The Guardian


© Copyright 2007. The Guardian. All rights reserved.

The quilted bags were big but the blow dries were bigger. In the foyer of a London auction house yesterday, Chanel's most devoted British customers showed that it would take more than rain to stop them from adhering to the most entrenched stereotypes about a typical fashion show audience.

While waiters served brightly coloured macaroons, everyone, including Naomi Campbell, a woman not known for her patience, seemed perfectly content to wait out the requisite 45-minute delay before the start of the first ever Chanel show in London.
Although the traditional fashion weeks take place in September and February, such restrictions have never hemmed in Chanel's indefatigable designer, Karl Lagerfeld, who sporadically stages extra shows to celebrate the seemingly endless lines he does for the venerable French label. Since 2002 this has included an extra show every year for what he calls his Metiers d'Art collection, created specifically to showcase the skills of the Parisian ateliers that work with the company, providing the label with intricate jewels and sculpted shoes.
Every year Lagerfeld has staged the show in a different city and this year it was London's turn, a fact which Lagerfeld rather endearingly worked into the collection itself amid all the jewels and sparkles.
While guests sat on gold chairs whose backs mimicked clothes hangers - perhaps in an attempt to put everyone in a shopping sort of mood - the first models came out dangling tiny evening bags splashed with the union flag. A little more subtly, and prettily, their hair was all swept up into oversized Amy Winehouse-style beehives. But unlike Winehouse's they were trimmed with jewels and, more importantly, looked recently washed.
The clothes, too, frequently had a British theme. The opening outfits - knee-length simple skirts or blouson culottes, piles of tweed jackets, thick black tights, simple pea coats and shiny loafers - made the models resemble English schoolgirls, albeit conspicuously well-dressed ones, with jewellery that looked a little finer than the sort available in Claire's Accessories. The leather coats and sharp jackets, often accessorised with fingerless gloves or jewelled feather dusters, seemed to be paying homage to the Clash and other 1970s British punk icons.
The live music was provided by Sean Lennon and the latest model girlfriend of Pete Doherty and face of Topshop - no, not that model, but her friend, Romanian-born Irina Lazareanu. Well, surely with those accolades she's an honorary Brit.
But leaving aside the nationalistic nods, the clothes were beautiful, better than much of what has been seen on the Chanel catwalks for a season or two. Perhaps because this was a show with such a heavy customer presence, Lagerfeld toned down his occasional impulse to make gimmicky clothes for sylph-like teenagers, such as the denim bikinis and tweed hotpants he showed in the mainline collection for next season, and concentrated on making things his monied and older customer base would want to buy. The simple knee-length black coats, lying strictly against the body and then kicking out, were flattering and, like much in the show, festooned with delicate jewels, while gold discs at the top of an evening gown lay as smoothly as the gills of a fish.

More info on: http://www.chanel.com/

Chanel likes Zaha Hadid

Coco Chanel was friend with many artists and invented patronage before the hour. Lipchitz, Cousteau, Stravinsky and Diaghilev, ranked among the artists she helped. Now Karl will collaborate with Zaha Hadid for a mobile exhibition. The design was launched in Venice during the Art Biennale opening weekend.

The form of the Chanel Pavilion is a celebration of the iconic work of Chanel, unmistakeable for its smooth layering of exquisite details that together create an elegant, cohesive whole. The resulting structure is very much tied to that original inspiration—elegant, functional, and versatile both in its overall structure and detail.

The architectural structure of the Pavilion is a series of continuous arch-shaped elements, with a courtyard in its central space. The glazed ceiling adjusts to allow for control of the interior temperature in response to the particular climate conditions of each venue city.

To learn more : http://zahahadidblog.com/projects/2007/06/13/zahas-travelling-exhibition-pavilion-for-chanel

CHANEL inspired by Godard.

Chanel shows an advertising campaign inspired by the film the Godard called " Le Mépris". The famous scene of opening where Brigitte Bardot, naked on her bed, shells her charms in front of the eyes of Michel Piccoli, was entirely transposed to the purpose of the spot.

Irony, this scene worshipped today, did not appear in the original scenario: it had been invented with by the scenario writer, under the pressure of its producers who wished to strip the star. The famous one “you love me… so you completely love me” in Chanel version will be showed on the screens TV (from March 3) and in cinemas (March 15).

Made by BETTINA Rheims, the film directs Julie Ordon in the role of Brigitte Bardot. The artistic direction was ensured by Jacques Helleu, the A.D of beauty department of the brand. The scenographic adaptation was designed by the collaborator of BETTINA Rheims, the novelist and photography expert Serge Bramly. Of course the star of this film is the lipstick: Allure red which is declined in 32 colours, including six new colors. It will be launched in spring.

More info on : www.chanel.com