Chanel’s timeless couture curiosity of the past, present and future for AW22.
With Haute Couture Week, there comes a sense of theatre. A feeling behind every inch of beading and embellishment, as garments are interpreted from personal feelings about love, life, society and our existence in general. From Virginie Viard’s perspective, garments speak upon the little moments in life that often go unnoticed or overlooked. Using her couture language, she paints a mural of historical Chanel references oftentimes forgotten nowadays, from the 1930s all the way through Karl Lagerfeld’s last designs.
With a powerhouse of artisans and craftspeople, Viard brought out an array of movement onto the sandy catwalk, opening with a grass green two-piece skirt suit, with a redefined cropped silhouette, merging timelessness into the future. Following, we witnessed a colour story that transformed the signature monochromatics of tweed, by bringing dashes of colourful detail such as a pink camellia embroidered top underneath a sandy beige tweed set, glistening with pink and blue details reminiscent of the reflection of stones.
Quietly experimenting further, Virginie Viard brought various shades of green to the forefront with collarbone-highlighting gowns and two-piece suits, protruding into pleated sculptures at the bottom, enhancing the subtle storyboard of hidden detail that is a Viard signature. Further fuelling her love for reinvention, the final looks of the collection brought in multiple techniques of stoning and dazzling embellishment into A-line silhouettes with layers and layers of tulle and organza concocted with stones, jewels, sequins and pearls, delicately hand-placed for the ultimate celebration of the Chanel legacy - bold, beautiful and openly bountiful to the future.
