"Camellia is not just a theme, but a timeless symbol of the brand," says Virginie Via, smiling before talking: "It makes me feel reassuring and intimate, and I love its softness and power." ”
——Virginie Viard
Yesterday, the Chanel Fall/Winter 2023/24 haute couture collection was launched, again in the temporary pavilion of the Grand Palais in Paris, which is decorated with giant camellia sculptures, which complement the current season.
The promotional video with a unique cinematic feel on the live screen was also projected among the white camellias, which became the focus of the audience. The video was performed by brand ambassador Nana Komatsu and shot by Chanel's longtime friend photographer Inez & Vinoodh.
The highlight of the show is obvious, the camellia, one of the classic elements of the Chanel brand. But what is different from the past is that this time, in addition to the classic white camellia, the red camellia has become the finishing touch.
The guests present were also star-studded, and the domestic representatives were Liu Wen, Zhang Junning, Jing Boran, and the three old friends of the brand also wore the 2023 "Chanel-Dakar" haute couture handicraft series items, although the styles are different, but the elegant style is the same.
Liu
Jing Boran
ZHANG Junning
The brand's founder, Ms. Gabrielle Chanel, has incorporated camellia into the design of her clothes and shoes since 1930. This show once again reinvents this classic element of the brand.
In the trailer before the show, under the lens of Inez & Vinoodh, actor Nana Komatsu shows the gentleness and delicacy of camellias, with surreal images, interpreting mysterious light and shadow contrasts, elegant gestures and delicate faces, harmoniously reflecting flowers.
Turning your gaze back to the runway, this winter flower is ubiquitous in this season's Fall/Winter haute Couture collection, sometimes in delightful embellishments on pockets, coats, buttons, and sometimes into romantic-inspired prints.
The camellia decoration decorated with long feathers is particularly impressive, and it is embellished in various items such as knitwear, skirts, and vests, most of which are based on black clothing.
Accessories such as hair accessories, earrings and necklaces are also mostly presented in camellias in different postures, and upon closer inspection, each piece reflects Chanel's exquisite craftsmanship.
The handbag collection, which has always been the focus of the public, also surprised, the brand's classic flap handbags, delicate and dexterous ball bags, are embellished with camellia, and most of the styles are also versatile for daily travel.
As you can see at the beginning, red camellias are another focus of the season, and the model's costumes have gradually changed from black and white at the beginning to magenta and red, and the color of the series is just right and meaningful.
The popular color of 2023, magenta, has also become a major protagonist in this season's runway, but this time Chanel uses a more low-key presentation, mainly dark magenta, creating a more calm and connotative atmosphere, so that this originally bold color system can be better used in daily wear.
The final positive red series pushes the show atmosphere to a climax with a more enthusiastic attitude, abandoning the large-scale presentation method, and this time most of the local decorations such as inner layers and accessories are integrated into this tone, and the bright red becomes the best embellishment in the look.
Fashion-interested audiences may also find that an important inspiration for the show was William Klein's 1966 French film Qui êtes-vous, Polly Maggoo?.
Nana Komatsu's image in the film is the same as that of the film's protagonist, Polly Maggoo. In the picture, she wears short shoulder-length hair with exaggerated eye makeup, sometimes playful and agile, sometimes immersed in fantasy, perfectly interpreting the unique visual style of this series.
"Actress Nana Komatsu became the heroine in the Inez & Vinoodh shots, and the dynamic energy of the carousel in the film's setting inspired me to conceive Bermuda shorts suits and asymmetrical designs," says Virginie Viard, who wanted to give this season's work a sophisticated and dynamic aesthetic.
Someone has said that if you want to understand the French fashion industry in the sixties, you must watch this film, and the famous director Stanley Kubrick said that this film is ten years ahead.
William Klein, who has multiple identities as a fashion photographer and artist, uses ironic, absurd and surreal expressions to present his deep insight into the fashion industry at that time. And the asymmetrical cut of the coat, the slit of the dress, the diagonal placket of the suit, these slightly sharp cutting techniques, all of which should not be in line with the atmosphere of the film.
Among them, the heroine Polly Maggoo is played by William Klein's favorite model Dorothy McGowan, and her role in the film is also a young popular model, performing a lot of fashionable outfits for everyone.
Many of the styling inspirations in the film were also reflected on this season's Chanel runway, such as the layered necklace.
电影《Who are you, Polly Maggoo?》
The agnès b. striped outfit designed by fashion editor Agnès Troublé is also one of the most impressive outfits, which led to the creation of the agnès b. brand, which continues to use this striped collection. Black and white stripe elements also appeared in the show, and the black and white main color of the entire show seemed to echo this stripe shape.
电影《Who are you, Polly Maggoo?》
In the movie, Polly Maggoo seems to be considered a superficial representative on the surface, like a delicate pulling doll without the ability to think, but in the end she becomes the only "rebel", a character who questions her identity and situation.
This spirit of rebellion has been ingrained in the brand since the time of Ms. Gabrielle Chanel, and this season it is evident in the cold smoky makeup of the runway models.
Leather clothes and leather boots with a glossy luster are also the best expression of unruly, rebellious temperament.
"I wanted to show a powerful and elegant and stylish gesture at the same time, sexy and glamorous, the kind of image that would inspire other women. It's cool to be able to interpret Virginie's work, and I can fully feel the joy of fashion. ”
——Nana Komatsu
As Nana Komatsu expressed in an interview, each of Chanel's works this season can somehow allow women to reinvent themselves at any time, "I don't just like Chanel's beauty. I also like the spirit of rigidity and softness. ”
Since the last century, Chanel has been the best representative of female power, and Chanel's female power has always been presented in the most elegant way through clothing.
The dashing and handsome barge collar, the floral coat like a noble prince's casual robe, and the men's coat worn when he goes out in the morning converge into a bohemian spirit that inspires people... In the show, the image of a female artist who is also soft and rigid emerges leisurely.
"The fading colors, hazy pinks, exquisite craftsmanship, the touch of the 1960s and 70s, the British atmosphere, the comfortably wrapped coat, and the solid materials make the collection full of realism and charm."
For the Chanel brand, breaking the shackles of traditional cultural thinking on women is its consistent goal. And women who wear Chanel always seem to feel the tenacity that clothing gives them. Because women can not only be soft as water, but also have a heart as tough as a rock.
Edited by Sugar
Design: Xiao B