Abraham of Amezaga
Paris, June 25 (EFE).- Chanel’s latest collection, which paraded this Tuesday at the Garnier Opera in the French capital with its fall-winter 2024/25 collection, is not the work of the outgoing head of the collections, Virginie Viard, but from the house’s creative team.
After the announcement at the beginning of June of Viard’s departure (Lyon, 1962), just a few weeks before the start of the Haute Couture shows, everything pointed to her being the author of the collection to close her work in Chanel. In the end it was not like that and the firm did not offer any explanations.
A bell ringing, signaling the start of a show, preceded the parade, in which 46 models were presented. Jacket proposals with six or four buttons, mostly made of tweed; dresses above and below the knee, and skirts, some of them made of pleats.
Capes, tweed outfits and dresses have been three of the proposals that have guided the collection, three great classics of the brand.
As for colors, white, black, and in some cases a combination of both, gray and pink, among others, have been seen. Gold has also made an appearance at the Garnier. Cradle of opera, models inspired by dance could not be missing, such as a wide skirt, which took us to films like ‘Black Swan’.
The ‘tweed’ comes accompanied by glitter, the tulle is revealed to be exquisitely delicate and there is the presence of feathers, specifically on a night cape.
Combinations of very rich materials, therefore and as usual, the result of the ancestral know-how of the Chanel workshops, among which are the feather maker Lemarié, the button creator Desrues and the embroiderer Lesage, among others.
A pass that has surprised in the field of accessories, as it does not include any bag, when it is the star accessory in the house, especially a model like the 2:55.
What has been a constant is the large black bow that has crowned each outfit until it has become the star accessory. In the case of the wedding dress it was white.
The fact of presenting the collection in a place like the opera and to make it easier for the lucky attendees to appreciate each and every one of the details, Chanel had sent along with the invitation some small imitation binoculars of the old ones; an object that will undoubtedly become a collector’s item.
With this show the Karl Lagerfeld era completely closes. After his death in 2019, the collections had been the work of Virginie Viard, whom the legendary German designer and photographer defined as “my left and right arm” and who worked with him for three decades.
The second day of Haute Couture week had Chanel as the main protagonist, being the only brand to organize two shows due to the expectation it always generates.
All the unknowns now lie in knowing who will be Viard’s replacement, the new face after the six annual collections presented by the ‘maison’ founded by the legendary Gabrielle Chanel in 1913.
The names of Hedi Slimane, head of Celine design, Sarah Burton, formerly of McQueen, or Pier Paolo Piccioli, formerly of Valentino, are being considered. According to sources from the firm, “it is expected that the signing will not be immediate and that the next two or three collections will continue to be the work of the creative team.” EFE
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