(Paris) The house of Chanel presented Tuesday at the Opéra Garnier in Paris a haute couture collection “of great evenings”, prepared by its studios after the sudden departure of its artistic director, Virginie Viard, former right-hand woman of Karl Lagerfeld.
Sophisticated, luxurious, theatrical, the collection is displayed in the exterior passageways surrounding the performance hall, transformed into red velvet boxes.
A medieval cape, an evening dress with puffed sleeves, an elegant matador outfit in white plastron and a velvet tuxedo punctuate the house’s classic tweeds, in touches of burgundy and luminous black.
In this cozy setting, the very “lagerfeldian” introduction of vinyl brings an unexpected touch to this parade of models wearing a large bow in their hair.
No greeting, no comment from the designer. This collection was created by 150 fashion artisans based in the secret workshops on Rue Cambon, Chanel said in a press release.
The crisis had been brewing for months, the skeptical pouts in the front row of each Virginie Viard fashion show had become recurrent: it exploded on May 2, after Chanel’s cruise show in Marseille, criticized for its haphazard cuts and a certain lack of audacity.
A month later, the announcement of his departure took place outside the codes of the highly regulated house founded by Gabrielle Chanel in 1910, in the middle of the night.
Faced with the violence of criticism against the artistic director, whose departure was greeted with relief in the fashion microcosm, designer Lutz Huelle denounced “pure cruelty”.
“I can’t imagine Karl working with someone for all these years without that person being able to do a great job,” he told AFP.
“Regardless of what one thinks of her work over the past five years, she found herself in the far from simple situation of having to, overnight, replace one of the world’s greatest and most successful designers. appreciated by the biggest brand in the world, a literally impossible task,” analyzed the German, whose fashion house is located in Paris.
Virginie Viard, 62, took up this prestigious and demanding position in 2019, after the death of the legendary creator. She had previously worked alongside him for over 20 years.
The succession, carefully prepared by the “Kaiser” of fashion, was supposed to be temporary. It lasted five years.
The French designer, always dressed simply, in a T-shirt and black pants, was extremely discreet in the press and sober in her interventions, contrasting with the flamboyant character of her mentor.
The desirability of the brand did not suffer, proof that what appeals to aficionados is not necessarily what appeals to customers.
During these five years, sales of the house majority-owned by the Wertheimer family reached new heights, with a record of nearly $20 billion in 2023, another “exceptional year” according to the label.
Since Ms. Viard took office, they had increased by 23% in the ready-to-wear sector.
What profile will Chanel look for for this position? Discreet ? Media? New wave or at the end of your career? Internal or external? Man or woman ?
The brand could give itself time, like Vuitton after the sudden death of designer Virgil Abloh in 2021 or Dior after the departure of John Galliano.
Among the names circulating, that of Hedi Slimane (Céline) has been coming up the most for months now, with the possibility of a first line for men.
More surprising would be those of the Frenchwoman Marine Serre or Simon Porte Jacquemus. Pierpaolo Piccioli, who left Valentino four months ago, would also be a legitimate candidate, as would the British Sarah Burton, who designed Princess Kate’s wedding dress.