User:Lisacarolinamartinez/Chanel Ready-to-Wear Collections and Runway Shows

Chanel is a privately-held French company founded in 1909 by Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel, a former milliner. The Chanel Ready-to-Wear collection is showcased biannually for spring-summer and autumn-winter seasons during Paris Fashion Week to an audience of media, retailers, buyers, investors, and customers, under the auspices of the Chambre Syndicale du Prêt-à-Porter des Couturiers et des Créateurs de Mode, which is one of three trade associations affiliated with the Fédération française de la couture, du prêt-à-porter des couturiers et des créateurs de mode. The House of Chanel is known for liberating women from the corset in the early 20th century and designing fluid, jersey pieces, most notably the little black dress. Chanel died in 1971, Karl Lagerfeld has been the Creative Director since 1983.

Chanel Ready-to-Wear Spring 2012 Runway Show
The Chanel Ready-to-Wear Spring 2012 Runway Show was presented on October 4, 2011 at the Grand Palais in Paris. With a massive seascape production, which Vogue described as spectacular and risk-taking, creative director Karl Lagerfeld unveiled 84 new looks with unconstructed jackets, cutaway backs, ostrich feather skirts, and sequined dresses in a lighter, iridescent palette of whites, creams, nudes, and metallics that shifted to pinks, corals, and blacks.

For a sportier element, Lagerfeld added drawstring waists and bomber jackets. The collection featured a variety of fabrics ranging from tweed, organza, lace, chiffon and lamé to knit, silk, and leather. With a slight 20’s influence, design details included drop-waists, pearl belts, seaweed panniers, boxy tweed jackets, and ruffles that mimicked sea sponges. There were also aquatic-themed accessories with handbags, shoes, and jewelry shaped as seashells, conch shells, and coral.

The production included stylized, oversized installations of giant sea life sculptures: stingray, sea horse, shark, anemone, and coral branches in a variety of matte, glossy, and sparkly finishes. Florence Welch provided the soundtrack with a live performance of “What the Water Gave Me.”

Saskia de Brauw opened the runway show. Freja Beha Erichsen, Aymeline Valada, Kasia Struss, Melissa Tammerjin, Anja Rubik, Arizona Muse, Kendra Spears, Shu Pei Qin, Abbey Lee Kershaw, Jacquelyn Jablonski, Karlie Kloss, Isabella Melo, Bette Franke, Tao Okamoto, Anais Pouliot, Kate King, Josephine Skriver, Heidi Mount, Fei Fei Sun, Lindsey Wixson, Miranda Kerr, Natasha Poly, Joan Smalls, Candice Swanepoel, and Liu Wen were amongst the models who also walked the show. Stella Tennant closed the presentation.

Uma Thurman, Anna Dello Russo, Julia Restoin-Roitfeld, Alexa Chung, Jared Leto, Vanessa Traina, Ines de la Fressange, Leigh Lezark, Sean Lennon, Charlotte Kemp Muhl, Clemence Poesy, Stefano Tonchi, Carine Roitfeld, and Princess Siriwanwaree of Thailand attended the show and were photographed on the front row.

Fashion Critic Tim Blanks described the runway presentation as “a magical underwater environment.” After the October 4, 2011 presentation, Blanks asked Lagerfeld at what point did the theme of the undersea world assert itself on the collection. Lagerfeld replied, “Nothing is more modern than the shapes in the ground of the sea who have billions of years. The sea is the same all over the world; so it’s a manualization in a very modern, graphic way—and where pollution hadn’t reached yet.”

Blanks noted the paradoxical metaphor of creating something very modern out of something very old. “I’m happy you say that,” noted Lagerfeld. “In fact, the oldest things are the most modern in a way.”

Chanel Ready-to-Wear Fall 2012 Runway Show
The Chanel Ready-to-Wear Fall 2012 Runway Show was presented on March 5, 2012 at the Grand Palais in Paris. Vogue Runway described the runway set as the Fortress of Solitude. Lagerfeld transitioned from the depths of the ocean to the center of the Earth with 68 new looks.

The presentation’s featured silhouette focused on a three-piece ensemble of jacket, shirt, and pants. The collection’s dichotic inspiration sources were mineralogical and cubist. Embroidered crystals along the hemlines and cuffs referenced the former influence, while color-blocking and the angularity of the design details evoked the latter. Even the models’ eyebrows were embellished by the couture embroidery house, Maison Lesage. Described by Vogue UK as a feast of color and texture with a feel of sorcery, this season’s palette included petrol green, purple, emerald, amethyst, and sapphire. Michel Gaubert provided the runway soundtrack.

Kati Nescher opened the runway show. Stella Tennant, Caroline Brasch Nielsen, Iris Egbers, Zuzanna Bijoch, Josefien Rodermans, Saskia de Brauw, MacKenzie Drazan, Sojourner Morrell, Marte Mei van Haaster, Jacquelyn Jablonski, Patrycja Gardygajlo, Xiao Wen Ju, Karmen Pedaru, Joan Smalls, Lida Fox, Bianca Balti, Joanna Koltuniak, Cara Delevingne, Edie Campbell, Sara Blomqvist, Liu Wen, Tao Okamoto, Lily Donaldson, Margaret Qualley, Miranda Kerr, Montana Cox, Morgane Warnier, Kendra Spears, Erjona Ala, Andie Arthur, Andreea Diaconu, Caitlin Lomax, Heidi Mount, Magdalena Frackowiak, Arizona Muse, and Bette Franke were amongst the models who also walked the show. Maria Bradley closed the presentation.

Alicia Keys, Katy Perry, Leigh Lezark, Poppy Delevingne, Laura Bailey, Caroline Sieber, Miroslava Duma, Caroline de Maigret, Carine Roitfeld, Alexia Niedzielski, Elisa Sednaoui, Elena Perminova, Anna Dello Russo, Bryan Grey-Yamboo, Gaia Repossi, Virginie Ledoyen, Maïwenn Le Besco, Mélissa Theuriau, Ulyana Sergeenko, Sky Ferreira, Princess Siriwanwaree Nareerat of Thailand, Virginie Mouzat, Baptiste Giabiconi, Yao Chen, and Laura Neiva, attended the show and were photographed on the front row.

Tim Blanks described the pieces as new, seductive, yet wearable. Vogue Italia Editor in Chief, Franca Sozzan i remarked of the collection, “It’s so different from anyone, because it makes you feel like you’re dreaming, but at the same time, you know that you could wear.”

When characterizing the runway design to Blanks, Lagerfeld said, “What is more modern? This looks like a city of skyscrapers that has exploded, in a way—so I think, nature is not such a bad designer, no? And the other inspiration in terms of cuts and shapes and embroideries is Czech Cubism. I thought it was an interesting expression.”

Chanel Ready-to-Wear Spring 2013 Runway Show
The Chanel Ready-to-Wear Spring 2013 Runway Show was presented on October 1, 2012 at the Grand Palais in Paris. Vogue Runway described the set as having an architectural modernism. With an installation of 13 oversized wind turbines and solar panels across the length of the catwalk signifying a message of sustainable energy, Lagerfeld unveiled 80 new looks. The set was designed to underscore the collection’s theme of ease and serenity.

This season’s featured silhouette statements were boleros and A-line skirts, dresses, and jackets. The creative director used three-dimensional chiffon cut-outs to create more lightness, volume, and movement. He eschewed his typical use of braids, buttons, and chains in favor of a more liberal placement of pearl embellishments for a look that he described to WWD as fresh and light, with different proportions and volumes.

Lagerfeld, who is approaching his 30th anniversary as Creative Director of Chanel, continues to modernize the house, without reinventing its core aesthetic. This season, he showed cropped jackets, cocoon shapes, trapeze cuts, bell sleeves, wide-cut jackets, skirt-dresses, embroidered flowers, and organza pinwheels.

Kati Nescher opened the runway show. Yumi Lambert, Anja Rubik, Jamie Bochert, Saskia de Brauw, Carla Ciffoni, Janice Alida, Erjona Ala, Joan Smalls, Lily McMenamy, MacKenzie Drazan, Stella Tennant, Stef van der Laan, Jacquelyn Jablonski, Anmari Botha, Giuliana Caramuto, Grace Mahary, Meghan Collison, Maria Bradley, Iselin Steiro, Lindsey Wixson, Montana Cox, Kaitlin Aas, Aymeline Valade, Iris Egbers, Lenka Varvarova, Patrycja Gardygajlo, Steffi Soede, Ming Xi, Shu Pei Qin, Xiao Wen Ju, Ondria Hardin, Lin Kjerulf, Ava Smith, Mila Krasnoiarova, Marine Deleeuw, Yulia Serzhantova, Esther Heesch, Milana Kruz, Elena Bartels, Antonina Vasylchenko, Elza Luijendijk, Cara Delevingne and were amongst the models who also walked the show. Marte Mei van Haaster closed the presentation.

Jennifer Lopez, Lou Doillon, Astrid Bergès-Frisbey, Leigh Lezark, Caroline de Maigret, Inès de la Fressange, Caroline Sieber, Poppy Delevingne, Chiara Clemente, Cécile Cassel, Laetitia Casta, Laura Neiva, Mario Testino, Erin Wasson, Anna Dello Russo, Giovanna Battaglia, Laura Bailey, Carine Roitfeld, Stephen Gan, and Alexia Niedzielski, attended the show and were photographed on the front row.

"No braids, no classic channel buttons, no chains—just pearls, pearls, and pearls, and that’s all,” as Lagerfeld described his new collection to Style.com’s Blanks. “It’s all about volume and lightness, because normally volume and lightness don’t go together. Everything is airy.”

When asked if this was the biggest thing he’d ever done, in terms of the production scale, the designer responded, “I don’t judge my things in terms of size. Energy is the most important thing in life. The rest comes later.”

Chanel Ready-to-Wear Fall 2013 Runway Show
The Chanel Ready-to-Wear Fall 2013 Runway Show was presented on March 4, 2013 at the Grand Palais in Paris. The House of Chanel marked its centennial anniversary

with a production designed to celebrate the brand’s market strength. An illuminated oversized globe spun in the center of the venue, with at least 300 pinned branded flags, one for every Chanel boutique, as the creative director ushered out 80 new looks to the soundtrack of Daft Punk’s “Around the World.”

The collection featured loose, bulky jackets, A-shapes, dropped-torsos, asymmetric hems, and statement sleeves. Fabrications included tweed, quilted silk, boucle wool, cashmere, chiffon. This season’s palette featured black, white, teal, red, and grey. The darker collection was offset by glittering tweeds and woven metallics.

Ashleigh Good opened and closed the runway show. Soo Joo Park, Magda Laguinge, Marte Mei van Haaster, Jamily Wernke Meurer, Edie Campbell, Amanda Murphy, Xiao Wen Ju, Kel Markey, Gracie Van Gastel, Cara Delevingne, Jemma Baines, Stella Tennant, Saskia de Brauw, Marine Deleeuw, Kati Nescher, Juliana Schurig, Mijo Mihaljcic, Iris van Berne, Odile Coco, Ming Xi, Sung Hee, Zlata Mangafic, Esther Heesch, Agne Konciute, Elizabeth Erm, Josephine Le Tutour, Amanda Sanchez, Dauphine McKee, Manuela Frey, Oksana Bondarenko, Nadja Bender, Janice Alida, Daphne Groeneveld, Meghan Collison, Shu Pei Qin, Ondria Hardin, Sara Blomqvist, Daphne Velghe, Caroline Brasch Nielsen, Antonia Wesseloh, and Louise Parker were amongst the models who also walked the show.

Marie-Josée Croze, Jessica Chastain, Gaia Repossi, Ana Giradot, Theophilus London, Caroline de Maigret, Princess Caroline of Hanover, Mario Testino, Patrick Demarchelier, Laura Bailey, Inès de la Fressange, Milla Jovovich, Alice Dellal, Leigh Lezark, Caroline Sieber, Clotilde Hesme, Jen Brill, Giovanna Battaglia, Miroslava Duma, Amber Kuo, Elena Perminova, Han Huo Huo, Frank Ocean, Vanessa Paradis, and Yi Zhou attended the show.

Actress and model Milla Jovovich said of the collection, “I love how he really brought in a lot of the essence of Coco Chanel into this collection, whether it was some of those more billowy coats—that was just so quintessentially Coco. I love how he is always able to take history and meld it with the future in the most beautiful, sensible way.”

As told to Style.com, Lagerfeld noted of his collection, “It was dark, but I don’t think it was sad. It’s not easy to run around in pink all day. It’s a very cosmopolitan, international look. It’s a global look women can wear all over the world… An interesting thing is that today it’s not that Europe, as big as the amount of shops, it’s the rest of the world, it’s the new world. And that’s very interesting, because French luxury industry survives doing so well because there are all of those new fortunes in a new part of the world. And this is something I wanted to show too, that they see all the flags there in this new world… It’s globalization, a fashion globalization.”

Chanel Ready-to-Wear Spring 2014 Runway Show
The Chanel Ready-to-Wear Fall 2013 Runway Show was presented on September 30, 2013 at the Grand Palais in Paris. This season, Lagerfeld staged an art exhibit reminiscent of Andy Warhol, the designer referenced Pop Art for a Pop Fashion collection, ushering out 89 new looks.

The Grand Palais was transformed into a huge gallery of paintings and sculptures. The pieces included iconic Chanel symbols such camellias, pearls, and a bottle of No.5.

Ensembles included shrunken sweaters, leather pants, flared skirts, and voluminous tweed jackets. Accessories varied from graffiti-style backpacks, canvas shoppers with bead appliqué, metallic leather mini purses, and logo-emblazoned plexiglass bags. This season’s palette varied from white and black to pink and purple.

As explained to Women's Wear Daily, Lagerfeld noted that the show’s concept began several months ahead of the collection as satire and the idea that people overact to art today. The designer created an art installation of 75 pieces as a backdrop to his presentation.

Cara Delevingne opened runway show. Ondria Hardin, Hollie-May Saker, Soo Joo Park, Kremi Otashliyska, Devon Windsor, Nadja Bender, Ji Young Kwak, Magda Laguinge, Fia Ljungstrom, Chiharu Okunugi, Pauline Hoarau, Sam Rollinson, Auguste Abeliunaite, Ashleigh Good, Zlata Mangafic, Caroline Brasch Nielsen, Kati Nescher, Diana Moldovan, Ji Young Kwak, Ming X i, Ieva Laguna, Esther Heesch, Grace Hartzel, Dasha Pilyuk, Joan Smalls, Marine Deleeuw, Drake Burnette, Amanda Wellsh, Tessa Bennenbroek, Edie Campbell, Sasha Luss, Anne-Sofie List, Ophelie Guillermand, Elizabeth Erm, Xiao Wen Ju, Ine Neefs, Holly Rose Emery, Katya Riabinkina, Grace Mahary, and Josephine Skriver were amongst the models who also walked the show. Lindsey Wixson closed the presentation.

Katy Perry, Rita Ora, Kate Upton, Virginie Ledoyen, Vanessa Paradis, Lou Doillon, Inès de la Fressange, Caroline de Maigret, Clémence Poésy, Margareth Madè, Zoë Kravitz, Rila Fukushima, Poppy Delevingne, Alma Jodorowsky, Caroline Sieber, Stacy Martin, Bip Ling, Leigh Lezark, Princess Siriwanwaree Nareerat of Thailand, Anna Dello Russo, Stacy Keibler, Laura Bailey, Elena Perminova, Miroslava Duma, Sofia Sanchez Barrenechea, Yi Zhou, Ece Sukan, and Chrystèle Saint Louis Augustin attended the show.

When asked about the art installation, Lagerfeld replied, “I designed it. I made small models, and then they make it bigger. Yes, I made everything. It’s not different young artists; only one old artist—it’s me… And I think it was right for today, no? Because life is not a red carpet. This is for daily life; that was the idea in fact.”

Chanel Ready-to-Wear Fall 2014 Runway Show
The Chanel Ready-to-Wear Fall 2014 Runway Show was presented on March 3, 2014 at the Grand Palais in Paris. This season, Lagerfeld’s team transformed the Grand Palais into a 139,930-square-foot supermarket labyrinth, one that took each model 4.5 minutes to traverse. Monikered the world’s most luxurious and chicest supermarket, the Chanel Shopping Center was stocked with Chanel-branded merchandise, everything from doormats, paint pots, and chainsaws to Pringles, Coco Pops, and bath salts— even the guests’ seats were fashioned out of cardboard boxes.

Remixes of Lady Gaga and Rihanna provided the runway soundtrack. A closing announcement created a bit of a fashion stampede, when the frenzied audience ran towards the runway clamoring for giveaways, “The shopping centre will be closing shortly, please help yourself to the complimentary fruit and veg and please come again."

The season’s silhouette was anchored by hourglass shapes and strong shoulders. Most outfits were layered over leggings. Corseted waistlines and knee-length skirts were paired with trapeze coats. Fabrications included tweed, cashmere, jersey, knitwear, silk, leather, and chiffon. The multi-hued palette varied from pink, orange, yellow, and green, to burgundy purple, grey, and black.

Featured accessories ranged from padlock necklaces and quilted headphones to sneakers and sneaker boots. With a sportier vibe, the show’s setting made a commentary on everyday consumerism.

Interviewed post-show, Rihanna said, “I think the show was fun. It was young… I loved the silhouettes. I really, really loved the layering, the colors, the tweed—I wanted so many pieces right away… Everything was brilliant. I think was very me. I feel like I could wear everything in the collection.”

“We saw the punk girl. I think I saw the sophisticated, the very young teenagers—they were all there, it feels like a brand that you can wear throughout any age,” noted Alicia Vikander.

“I think that’s one of the most extraordinary things about Karl,” added Keira Knightley, “For however long he’s been doing this, he continues to reinvent and continues to be forward-thinking, and always about the present and the future.”

Cara Delevingne opened runway show, which featured 78 looks. Charlotte Free, Lindsey Wixson, Julia Nobis, Juliana Schurig, Sam Rollinson, Ashleigh Good, Binx Walton, Kati Nescher, Brogan Loftus, Maja Salamon, Kremi Otashliyska, Grace Mahary, Natalie Westling, Malaika Firth, Stella Tennant, Mijo Mihaljcic, Kirsten Owen, Ine Neefs, Maggie Jablonski, Saskia de Brauw, Jeanne Cadieu, Ondria Hardin, Kid Plotnikova, Juliette Fazekas, Soo Joo Park, Zlata Mangafic, Emma Oak, Magda Laguinge, Xiao Wen Ju, Pauline Hoarau, Eva Berzina, Lexi Boling, Anna Ewers, Esther Heesch, Daria Piot, Chiharu Okunugi, Tabitha Pernar, Kendall Jenner, Fei Fei Sun, Marine Deleeuw, and Ronja Furrer were amongst the models who also walked the show. Nastya Sten closed the presentation.

Keira Knightley, Rihanna, Melanie Griffith, Stella Banderas, Marianne Faithfull, Clémence Poésy, Rila Fukushima, Inès de la Fressange, Alicia Vikander, Caroline de Maigret, Astrid Bergès-Frisbey, Baptiste Giabiconi, La Fouine, Laura Neiva, Elisa Sednaoui, Alma Jodorowsky, Alice Dellal, Joana Preiss, Kiko Mizuhara, Vera Valdez, Clotilde Hesme, Tao Okamoto, Élodie Bouchez, Gaspard Ulliel, Laura Bailey, Sofia Sanchez Barrenechea, Sama and Haya Abu Khadra, Yi Zhou, Leigh Lezark, Bae Donna, Miroslava Duma, and Rebecca Wang attended the show.

Chanel Ready-to-Wear Spring 2015 Runway Show
The Chanel Ready-to-Wear Spring 2015 Runway Show was presented on September 30, 2014 at the Grand Palais in Paris. The production was a 130-meter-long catwalk set as Boulevard Chanel staging a fashion protest. Lagerfeld’s team recreated an urban cityscape with building facades, wrought-iron terraces, pavements, and puddles. This season’s underlying theme was female empowerment. This was a collection about individuality and self-expression, which is why there were so many mix and match pieces.

This feminine fashion expressionism was that women should be able to dress exactly how they want. The silhouettes included everything from double-breasted suits, utility field jackets, and flared trousers to polo shirts with jogging pants, box-pleated skirts, and evening gowns. This season’s fabrications were knits, silk, lace, chiffon, tweed, and leather.

Some of the finale protest signs read, “Tweed is Better Than tweet,” “Be Your Own Stylist,” “Make Fashion not War,” “Free Freedom,” “Ladies First” “Women’s Rights Are More Than Alright,” and “History is Her Story.” Chaka Khan’s “I’m Every Woman” provided the runway soundtrack.

Cara Delevingne opened runway show, which featured 86 looks, with a megaphone in hand. Binx Walton, Melina Gesto, Josephine Le Tutour, Nadja Bender, Georgia Hilmer, Eva Berzina, Sanne Vloet, Charlotte Free, Jamie Bochert, Maarte Verhoef, Marie Piovesan, Daphne Groeneveld, Malaika Firth, Georgia May Jagger, Anna Ewers, Sam Rollinson, Lexi Boling, Zlata Mangafic, Valery Kaufman, Kremi Otashliyska, Ine Neefs, Grace Hartzel, Stella Lucia, Anka Kurydina, Pauline Hoarau, Amanda Murphy, Molly Bair, Julia Bergshoeff, Brogan Loftus, Hollie-May Saker, Taylor Hill, Olympia Campbell, Dani Witt, Dasha Sarakhanova, Magda Laguinge, Liu Wen, Ronja Furrer, Rachael Robinson, Kati Nescher, Antonia Wesseloh, Anna Cleveland, Gigi Hadid, Kendall Jenner, Joan Smalls, and Gisele Bündchen were amongst the models who also walked the show. Lindsey Wixson closed the presentation, culminating in a feminist march protest.

Anna Mouglalis, Astrid Bergès-Frisbey, Clotilde Hesme, Baz Luhrmann, Catherine Martin, Ana Giradot, Clara Paget, Julie Delpy, Alma Jodorowsky, Kiko Mizuhara, Elisa Sednaoui, Laura Neiva, Alexa Chung, Theophilus London, Alice Dellal, Xavier Dolan, Poppy Delevingne, Louise Grinberg, Laura Bailey, Caroline Sieber, Anna Linhartová, Claire Berest, Anne Berest, Yi Zhou, Leigh Lezark, Razane Jammal, Melusine Ruspoli, and Kris Jenner attended the show.

As told to Tim Blanks of Style.com, Lagerfeld noted, “I like the idea to show the clothes in the street, girls walking like as if they were walking in the street. And also, there are all kinds of pieces; everybody can use, play with. It’s not professional… There are no 70’s, no 60’s—it’s more of a Mod de Viv than mod.”

W Magazine's Editor-in-Chief Stefano Tonchi said of the presentation, “Karl is such a great social commentator. It’s true that fashion is supposed to be the mirror of society, but he really put the mirror on our faces and he reflects the feeling and the mood and the ideas that people have in their mind.

Chanel Ready-to-Wear Fall 2015 Runway Show
The Chanel Ready-to-Wear Fall 2014 Runway Show was presented on March 10, 2015 at the Grand Palais in Paris. Titled the “French Collection,” this season the Grand Palais was transformed into Brasserie Gabrielle, a Left Bank cafe, with polished wood, leather, brass, and an oval bar. Ensembles focused on layering separates: blouses, cardigans, sweater gowns, oversized anoraks, leather joggers, lace leggings, pencil skirts, tweed suits, cap-toe slingbacks, origami quilted puff coats, and sheer cocktail dresses. The production included waiters and baristas serving coffee and croissants. During the presentation, models entered through a revolving door before sitting in the banquettes.

Cara Delevingne opened and closed the runway show, which featured 98 looks. Nadja Bender, Mica Arganaraz, Ondria Hardin, Kendall Jenner, Magda Laguinge, Stella Lucia, Joan Smalls, Greta Varlese, Grace Mahary, Waleska Gorczevski, Julia van Os, Binx Walton, Pauline Hoarau, Sasha Pivovarova, Sam Rollinson, Charlotte Free, Anna Ewers, Regitze Christensen, Julia Nobis, Kremi Otashliyska, Ashleigh Good, Josephine Le Tutour, Ine Neefs, Larissa Marchiori, Irina Djuranovic, Jade de Lavareille, He Cong, Sasha Luss, Alexandra Elizabeth, Melina Gesto, Zlata Mangafic, Hollie-May Saker, Aneta Pajak, Larissa Hofmann, Vanessa Moody, Emma Oak, Sofia Tesmenitskaya, Eva Berzina, Antonina Petkovic, Georgia Hilmer, Amanda Sanchez, Emmy Rappe, Taylor Hill, and Lily Donaldson were amongst the models who also walked the show.

Stella Tennant, Florence Welch, Caroline de Maigret, Inès de la Fressange, Carmen Kass, Patrick Demarchelier, Cécile Cassel, Alma Jodorowsky, Lou Doillon, Anne Berest, Marie-Ange Casta, Laura Bailey, Li Yuchun, Poppy Delevingne, Isabella Manfredi, Miroslava Duma, Yao Chen, Tuba Ünsal, Saila Kunikida, Yi Zhou, Jill Cerrone and Marc Cerrone, Leigh Lezark, Hilary Tsui, Alessandra Mastronardi, Joséphine Japy, Loan Chabonal, and Noor Fares attended the show.

Style.com described the runway show as Lagerfeld’s love letter to Paris, “This was for the attitude, for the femininity, for the spirit of Chanel, for a kind of renewed sexiness from another age, to make it more modern,” the designer explained to Tim Blanks post-show.

“The message of Chanel that evolved in something bigger, more futuristic, which I thought was interesting,” noted Caroline de Maigret. “What I’m always amazed in Karl’s work for Chanel is the relationship he has with France. Last time we had the demonstration in the streets that belonged to us. Now we have the French brasserie, and it moves me in a way. It’s like my cultural roots that come out.”

“The whole brasserie side was lovely because it is like being at my corner cafe and the feeling of being very French… And there were loads of tweeds and silhouettes that reminded me of France, reminded me of the 60’s in France and this whole culture of cafes at the time.” said Lou Doillon.

“I’m a stranger so I have a distorted view on French life, because you know I’m a little tired also of people saying ‘Oh France isn’t good anymore.’ Even the French, the famous French-bashing—so I wanted to show that are few things are not that bad and typically French, and they should enjoy what they have,” Lagerfeld added. “The minute I finish one, I have to think about the next one, eh? That’s why so many designers think the speed is too big and I don’t think so. It’s a nonstop dialogue, and if you are not ready to have a nonstop dialogue with fashion, you should do another job.”

Chanel Ready-to-Wear Spring 2016 Runway Show
The Chanel Ready-to-Wear Spring 2016 Runway Show was presented on October 6, 2015 at the Grand Palais in Paris. This season the venue was transformed into an airport terminal with double C luggage carts and airline staff. The Chanel Airlines Terminal included a departures board highlighting destinations for upcoming events in Shanghai, Salzburg, New York, London, and Rome. Ensembles included tweed suits, pencil skirt, dropped shoulder jackets, and knitted skirts. Accessories this season varied from quilted carry-on bags and velcro sandals to driving gloves and aviator sunglasses. This season’s palette featured white, black, silver, pink, and powder blue. Fabrications ranged from wool, leather, denim, lurex, and PVC to sequins, crystals, silk, chiffon, and tulle.

Edie Campbell opened the presentation, which featured 95 looks. Lexi Boling, Lauren de Graaf, Kendall Jenner, Josephine Le Tutour, Roos Abels, Greta Varlese, Isabella Emmack, Lineisy Montero, Cristina Herrmann, Karly Loyce, Zuzu Tadeushuk, Rhiannon McConnell, Kremi Otashliyska, Melina Gesto, Yana Van Ginneken, Jade de Lavareille, Allie Barrett, Binx Walton, Aneta Pajak, Marta Ortiz, Michelle van Bijnen, Anna Ewers, Charlotte Free, Chiara Scelsi, Ala Sekula, Celine Bouly, Avery Blanchard, Eva Berzina, Ming X i, Olivia Mink, Amanda Sanchez, Louise Parker, Kawani Prenter, Julia Hafstrom, Sara Soric, Romy Schonberger, Camille Hurel, Anka Kuryndina, Irina Djuranovic, Imaan Hammam, Vanessa Moody, Lindsey Wixson, Sophia Ahrens, and Kendall Jenner were amongst the models who also walked the show. Mica Arganaraz closed the runway show.

Janelle Monáe, Vanessa Paradis, Jean-Paul Goude, Lily-Rose Depp, Cara Delevingne, Casha Zhukova, Anna Dello Russo, Giovanna Battaglia, Liu Wen, Laura Bailey, Maria Sharapova, Caroline de Maigret, Johanna Birman, Leigh Lezark, Lewis Hamilton, Alma Jodorowsky, Inès de la Fressange, Marine Vacth, Marie-Ange Casta, Virginie Ledoyen, Clotilde Hesme, Cécile Cassel and Céline Sallette attended the show.

Lagerfeld told Style.com post-show, “Getting to the skies, you have to go through an airport… So I wanted to make the perfect airport, where boarding is a pleasure and not a nightmare, like it is now.”

“This airport was like we needed more Utopian than real things; we wanted to avoid security alerts, missed luggage, all that kind of stuff. So, it was more like a happy airport,” observed Michel Gaubert.

“We’re flying high class and it was beautiful,” said Audrey Marnay. “All the prints at the beginning and the look with the long skirts, it’s always a new thing.”

“I thought the collection was very fresh and colorful. There were a lot of twists at first. And I love the way the fabrics, they were like graphism on the tweed of red and blue and white. It’s always a surprise with Karl, I never know where I’m going to end up.”

“I like the shape of airplanes. I love airplanes. It’s like a kind of butterfly,” Lagerfeld added. “They also wear very formal things with nothing. The Chanel suits, there’s no buttons, no braids, no pockets and it just looks Chanel. I think that’s fun.”

Chanel Ready-to-Wear Fall 2016 Runway Show
The Chanel Ready-to-Wear Fall 2016 Runway Show was presented on March 8, 2016 at the Grand Palais in Paris. While the presentation didn’t include some of the more elaborate sets that the house has been known for in recent seasons, the runway show did give every one of its 3,000 guests a gilded front seat along a 600-meter runway. Vogue UK described the collection as Chanel for the new generation. Influenced by elevated streetwear, the silhouettes were less ladylike with a utilitarian luxe, with more deconstructed and frayed pieces.

The collection featured a leaner silhouette with suits, shrunken jackets, metallic skirts, and trench coats. Accessories were oversized with jeweled belt buckles, long knitted gloves, and layered pearl necklaces. This season’s palette included white, grey, black, silver, fuchsia, and red. Materials ranged from tweed, jacquard, matelasse, and leather to lamé, chiffon, organza, and lace.

Mica Arganaraz opened the presentation, which featured 93 looks. Edie Campbell, Sarah Brannon, Selena Forest, Damaris Goddrie, Anna Mila Guyenz, Pauline Hoarau, Ine Neefs, Stella Lucia, Natalia Siodmiak, Felice Veen, Julia Bergshoeff, Sora Choi, Frederikke Sofie, Marte Mei van Haaster, Odette Pavlova, Kremi Otashliyska, Lia Pavlova, Sasha Luss, Julia Ratner, Soo Joo Park, Romy Schonberger, Bhumika Arora, Camille Hurel, Ronja Furrer, Sam Rollinson, Roos Abels, Olivia Mink, Valery Kaufman, Hyun Ji Shin, Alanna Arrington, Alicja Tubilewicz, Cong He, Waleska Gorczevski, Tami Williams, Vittoria Ceretti, Skylar Tartz, Gigi Hadid, Bella Hadid, and Kendall Jenner were amongst the models who also walked the show. Ondria Hardin closed the runway show.

Isabelle Huppert, Jada Pinkett Smith, Willow Smith, Helen Lasichanh, Pharrell Williams, Stella Tennant, Caroline de Maigret, Inès de la Fressange, Karen Elson,

Anna Wintour, Wendy Murdoch, Audrey Marnay, Thylane Blondeau, Marie-Ange Casta, Anamaria Vartolome, Lola Bessis, Ayami Nakajo, Yi Zhou, Halsey, Amanda de la Ferronniere, and Anna Brewster attended the show.

Pharrell Williams told Vogue Magazine, “This show was like synchronized swimming. We got to experience his thoughts manifested, to have all of the models walk a half a mile was a huge proposition—but he pulled it off.”

Lagerfeld explained, “I think the dream of a lot of people is to be on the front row for once in their life. Because the people in row number five, they don’t see the detail with half a mile of runway, but the music was made that they could walk quickly and everything; it’s for a fast life, you can move, you can travel...”

Chanel Ready-to-Wear Spring 2017 Runway Show
Monikered “Intimate Technology” as a celebration of all things digital, the Chanel Ready-to-Wear Spring 2017 Runway Show was presented on October 4, 2016 at the Grand Palais in Paris which had been converted to a giant mainframe computer clicking, whirring, and flashing away with brightly wired circuit boards. This Chanel Data Center was the technological backdrop to robot attendants (CocoBots) in Chanel suits who welcomed show guests. Vogue Italia described the science-fiction influenced setting as having a server room palette of white, blue, purple, green, pink, and black. Fabrications included cotton, lace, silk, tweed, leather, and lurex. Silhouettes were oversized and layered; puff jackets were paired chiffon dresses in techno and laser optic prints, while tweed jackets were worn over lace dresses. Lagerfeld created a dichotomy between the modern, metallic tweeds, which he juxtaposed against delicate underpinnings: slips, camisoles, lace shorts, and bed jackets.

Accessories were metallic and embellished from ballet pumps, crystal belts, and bold necklaces to fluorescent bags with Chanel spelled out in LED lights; circuit-board clutches, and baseball caps, worn sideways. Amanda Sanchez opened the presentation, which featured 86 looks to Donna Summer’s “I Feel Love.”

Arizona Muze, Mica Arganaraz, Teddy Quinlivan, Alanna Arrington, Edie Campbell, Li Xiao Xing, Greta Varlese, Stella Lucia, Binx Walton, Josephine Le Tutour, Molly Bair, Mayowa Nicholas, Jasmine Tookes, Kyle Howell, Camille Hurel, Ola Rudnicka, Selena Forrest, Luna Bijl, Lexi Boling, Vanessa Moody, Hyun Ji Shin, Jessie Bloemendaal, Romee Strijd, Olivia Jansing, Jing Wen, Pauline Hoarau, Vittoria Ceretti, Impy, Mariana Beltrame, Marine Deleeuw, Tami Williams, Johanna Defant, Taylor Hill, Katie Moore, Chiharu Okunugi, Emm Arruda, Madga Laguine, Yuda Zeng, Bara Podzimkova, Lia Pavlova, Faretta, Sarah Brannon, Mali Koopman, Ala Sekula, and Odette Pavlova were amongst the models who also walked the show. Cris Herrmann closed the runway show.

Anna Dello Russo, Anna Mouglalis, Carla Bruni Sarkozy, Caroline de Maigret, Francis Bean Cobain, Courtney Love, Harley Viera-Newton, Inès de la Fressange, Laure Heriard Dubreuil, Lily-Rose Depp, Marie-Ange Casta, Sama Abu Khadra, Haya Abu Khadra, Usher, Alessandra Mastronardi, Alma Jodorowsky, Cecile Cassel, Clotilde Hesme, Diane Rouxel, Gaspard Ulliel, Owlle, Sigrid Bouaziz, Stephanie Sokolonski, Thylane Blondeau, and Ye Seul Han attended the show.

Lily-Rose Depp said of the collection, “I loved the suits with the oversized coasts and skirts, and also the back-to-front jackets. You could see the little chain down the back with the Chanel logo.”

“I found the mixture of tradition and technology fascinating,” noted Caroline de Maigret. “The classic chic, the jackets, but reworked in innovative fabrics. I loved the little wires, the computer cables that echoed the thread in the clothes.”

“My favorite thing was the colorful tweed suits,” explained Nana Komatsu. “I also liked how the models wore their caps to the side. It’s very street style.”

“A house like Chanel has these iconic pieces, which are renewed by Karl in a totally different way each time,” observed Gaspard Ulliel. “I think it’s a very young collection.”

“The set was a perfect backdrop for the collection with its play on light and color,” stated Anna Mouglalis. “There was a mixture of delicacy, modernity, and tradition that was really beautiful.”

Chanel Ready-to-Wear Fall 2017 Runway Show
The Chanel Ready-to-Wear Fall 2017 Runway Show was presented on March 7, 2017 at the Grand Palais in Paris. Vogue heralded Creative Director, Lagerfeld as fashion’s astronomer-in-chief with his starship themed-presentation, when at the finale a giant Chanel-branded rocket, measuring 35 meters or 115 feet high appeared to jettison off the catwalk to the soundtrack of Elton John’s “Rocket Man.”

The inspiration came from local news, specifically an obsession with Thomas Pesquet, a French aerospace engineer, pilot and European Space Astronaut, who was part of ESA’s Expedition 50 and 51 from November 2016 to June 2017.

The Los Angeles Times described the collection an a launchpad for interstellar luxe.

This style space odyssey’s, silhouettes featured boxy tweed jackets, bermuda shorts, silver leather suits, foil quilted capes, glitter boots, and diamanté collars. The ensembles were accessorized with bejeweled ear warmers, sparkly arm warmers, silver backpacks, and minaudière in the shape of a rocket. This season’s palette was black, silver, white, grey, and blue. Fabrications included tweed, leather, shearling, wool, silk, lurex, chiffon, and jersey, embellished with crystals and sequins.

Cara Taylor opened the presentation, which featured 96 looks. Birgit Kos, Camille Hure l, Ratner, Lauren de Graaf, Luna Bijl, Lindsey Wixson, Romy Schonberger, Darya Kostenich, Alexandra Binaris, Laurijn Bijnen, Catherine McNeil, Anna Ewers, Marine Deleeuw, Lexi Boling, Tess Angel, Odette Pavlova, Molly Bair, McKenna Hellam, Yoon Young Bae, Frederikke Sofie, Kendall Jenner, Ania Chiz, Gigi Hadid, Josephine Le Tutour, Lex Herl, Mag Cysewska, Cris Herrmann, Mica Arganaraz, Julia Merkelbach, Emm Arruda, Bara Podzimkova, Myrthe Bolt, Angelica Erthal, Ola Rudnicka, Stella Lucia, Nadja Bender, and Arizona Muse were amongst the models who also walked the show. Ondria Hardin closed the runway show.

Lily-Rose Depp, Rita Ora, Lottie Moss, Pharrell Williams, Cara Delevingne, Vanessa Paradis, Caroline de Maigret, Jasmine Sanders, Karidja Toure, Lily Allen, Sofia Coppola, and Amandla Stenberg attended the runway show.

Business of Fashion Editor-at-Large Tim Blanks noted that after shows in Tokyo and Cuba, that Karl Lagerfeld had taken his collection to space, the final frontier.

“I just was thinking to myself how much it’s elevated over the years,” noted Rita Ora. “And just how now we can just have fun with glitter and sparkles. And like the models are all young and just it’s kind of like really refreshing to see someone like Karl still really embrace kind of the new generation.”

“He likes new things!” observed Ines de la Fressange, “He’s never turned to the past and he never wants to talk about the past and he hates nostalgia. And it’s funny, how he’s a visionary.”