Chanel’s chic show is the calm eye of Paris Fashion Week’s Twitter storm | Paris Fashion Week

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It was Coco herself who said that fashion reflects the world in which we live. But while much of Fashion Week holds a mirror to the current era of glamorous controversy and outrage—at Schiaparelli, a foam lion head worn by Kylie Jenner sparked social media ire from stricken animal lovers—until the head of PETA unexpectedly swooped in to couture’s rescue by saying the look “Celebrates the beauty of a lion” – Chanel is the calm eye of the storm.

Virginie Viard, who replaced the gorgeous showman Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel four years ago, delivered an understated mood here. The animals of Coco’s chic Paris apartment—where marble lions stood guard alongside pairs of carved wooden deer, and a lucky golden frog on the coffee table—were the subject of her latest couture show.

Chanel’s spring-summer 2023-2024 haute couture collection at Paris Fashion Week on Tuesday. Photo: Stéphane de Saccotin/AFP/Getty Images

In contrast to Schiaparelli’s Instagram-bait taste of the Kardashians and fux-taxidermy, Chanel’s Trojan beauties, stags, and birds were abstract plywood sculptures by artist Xavier Veilhan, and the models posing wore shiny tweed suits. The drama came in a light touch, in the circus top hats and neckties worn by chokers.

However, Chanel will have the lion’s share of the spotlight this year. A major exhibition at New York’s Metropolitan Museum honoring the career of Lagerfeld, who spent four decades at Chanel, will be followed by a major retrospective of Coco herself at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum later this year. Backstage before the show, Chanel’s head of fashion, Bruno Pavlovsky, said he had “watched the Met’s exhibition planning – it’s amazing. I worked with Karl for many years, and he was always talking about the latest Met shows. He really liked the museum.”

Pavlovsky was also waiting to find out which of Chanel’s red carpet ambassadors would receive Oscar nominations. Last year was a successful season for Chanel Awards, which fetched Best Actress nominations for Kristen Stewart and Penelope Cruz.

Looks from the Chanel show at Paris Fashion Week. Photo: Stéphane de Saccotin/AFP/Getty Images

“We have great actors who can help speak for our brand, so any time we can help them be the best they can be is very important to us,” said Pavlovsky. “We try to position ourselves as a supportive partner — it’s a case of whatever they want, when they want it.”

Chanel’s relationship with Hollywood began in 1931, when Gabrielle Chanel was invited by movie mogul Sam Goldwyn, who sent a welcome party that included Greta Garbo to meet her from her train.

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Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertisements, and content funded by third parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Understated elegance at Chanel’s show on Tuesday. Picture: Xinhua/REX/Shutterstock

Chanel will stage a major runway show for Cruise in Los Angeles in May, one week after the Met Gala launches Lagerfeld. In New York, we’re celebrating Karl’s 40 years – and then we head straight to LA to show off a new collection and talk about the future. It’s going to be a busy week for everyone, especially with [the coronation of] Charles III in between. But you can’t be Chanel just by staying in an apartment on the first floor of the 1st arrondissement of Paris.”

In September, the Victoria and Albert Museum will display “the modern style of the era in which the star designers, of whom Mademoiselle Chanel was, defined much of modern fashion,” said Pavlovsky. “For me, there is no contradiction between the past and the future of Chanel.”

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