Coco Chanel was perhaps one of the first fashion geniuses to invent the idea of a cruise collection – she would often sit in her beige and black apartment on Rue Cambon or hang loose in her country house – La Pausa – dreaming of luxe voyages to foreign lands – which inspired her offerings.
Moreover, Coco was an extraordinary heroine of her century, who surrounded herself with icons like Jean Cocteau, Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dali.
“It was the artists who taught me rigor,” she had once said. Mademoiselle and Cocteau shared their creative canvas – while Cocteau created some stunning portraits of her and also sketches of her creations, and in turn she styled productions of his plays Antigone, Orpheus, and Oedipus Rex.
This artistic collaboration and the soul-searing beauty of the quaint French country town of Provence inspired Virginie Viard for this cruise collection.
Besides, Coco’s Parisian home was also on Virginie’s mood board and she drew inspiration from the apartment’s menagerie – from the lions (Coco was a Leo) to her camels to the doves of peace.
Even in the past (Pre-fall 2020), Viard has revisited Coco’s address – recreating the gold wheat chaff as embroidery (which mademoiselle kept for good luck) or making the models sashay down the famous staircase runway (mimicking the original one in Chanel’s apartment flanked by the Art Deco mirrors).
For this cruise outing, she recreated some of these references in pieces while lending them a punk vibe with models sporting pronounced smokey eyes, fringed mane and fishnet stockings.
The monochrome miniskirts, suits and coat dresses which had windowpane checks peppered on them stood out so did the breezy kaftans, perforated capes and fringed minis – offset by leather belts, chain handbags and neck chokers.
The late model Stella Tennant’s quintessentially punk spirit also reflected in some of the looks. Besides the signature black and white, there was a hint of lilac – seen in the furry accents and luscious embroidery inspired by the rich flora of Provence.
In these gloomy times of helplessness and chaos, trust Chanel to take us on an escapist virtual route to the scenic Provence.
