All targets were focused this Thursday evening on the Marseille city. It’s a shame that the weather forecast didn’t confirm the Marseille legend that the sun always shines on the city. But the bad weather did not discourage many personalities from attending the “cruise” fashion show, that is to say off-season, of the house of Chanel. The event was organized on the roof of the Cité radieuse in Marseille. In the front row, among the guests protected by large umbrellas, were among others the actress Lily-Rose Depp, the local icon rapper SCH and Charlotte Casiraghi. But also Marion Cotillard, director Audrey Diwan, musician Sébastien Tellier and Sadie Sink from the series Strangers Things.
A tribute to Marseille and Corbusier
“Marseille is a city that puts me in touch with my emotions,” says Virginie Viard, artistic director of the house, in a press release, adding that she has tried “to transcribe the energy that reigns there”.
Embroideries of small amorous fish, fishing nets and shells populated the house’s classic dresses, jackets and suits, sometimes enhanced with an improbable neoprene diver’s hood.
Virginie Viard also played with patterns inspired by the “facades of the surrounding buildings” even in the layout of the famous Chanel tweed.
Continuing a disruptive movement that appeared at the last women’s fashion show in February and was shocking for the luxury house considered conservative, a few street-wear codes, including the hoodie, made of precious muslin nonetheless, or jogging pants with embroidered braid.
For this so-called “cruise” off-season show, the swimwear collection is adorned with accessories, from terrycloth flip-flops to honeycomb swim skirts.
Art crafts in the spotlight for the general public
In parallel with this ultra-select event, Chanel is also opening for four weeks a place open to the general public at Fort Saint-Jean, right next to the Mucem on the Old Port. It is an offshoot of the 19M gallery in Aubervilliers, a place dedicated to Chanel’s art houses (embroidery, trimmings, featherwork, etc.).
In addition to an exhibition on artisans and brands from the Marseille region, workshops open to all are also offered upon registration. It will therefore be possible to learn enameling techniques or participate in a monumental and collective work on the theme of bird murmuring until May 19.