CHANEL UNVEILS NEW COLLECTION DURING ITS MÉTIERS D’ART SHOW IN HANGZHOU

edited by SONNY NGO

I can’t think of a more elegant and serene backdrop to walk a fashion runway than the vast West Lake in Hangzhou, China. The late Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel has always had a bit of a soft spot for Chinese culture, her 31 rue Cambon apartment in Paris famously featured coromandel lacquered screen inspired walls, and today, the Maison honours her admiration for Chinese culture as the Métiers d’Art show was held over the lake as the sun slowly faded into the night. 

Although the designer never actually visited the country, its cultural ideas deeply influenced the house’s collections and aesthetic. Especially now, as the collection stars embroidered flower motifs running through the likes of dresses and suits, a nod to the lacquered screen in Chanel’s apartment. Similarly, the colour palette, consisting of jade greens, pastel pinks, and sky blue hues, borrows from those same Parisian walls.

The silkiness of the pockets, sleeves, collars and braids, radiates with gentle luminescence. And continuing this dreamlike odyssey, long coats in precious tweeds, satin, and velvet are infused with a mystical aesthetic. The pockets too, signature of the Maison, take the shape of envelopes. In turn, it conjures imagery of love letter-writing, and it fits all too well with this poetic runway.