Split into three different floors, Mademoiselle Privé is a journey through Gabrielle Chanel's apartment, her codes and symbols, her N°5 and the re-editions of the High Jewellery 'Bijoux de Diamants' collection created in 1932.
I really liked the exhibition. The concept was very modern, however to enjoy the full experience you needed the Mademoiselle Privé app. I have nothing against technology, but I don't think this exhibition was suitable for everybody. I noticed there was a lot of old people who didn't have smartphone or tablets, so they couldn't see or read the extra details provided in each room.
A woman asked me while I was walking in the totem room why I was looking at my phone and I politely replied that I was reading the information about each totem via their app. I ended up sharing my phone screen with this very nice lady through the whole exhibition.
If you intend to go to the exhibition before it ends, you should not read the rest of my post as I am sharing pictures of the whole exhibition. For people who can't go this exhibition, I've included all the details you get from the app while walking through each room so you can enjoy the full experience in my post.
BTW I went to the exhibition at 10am as it was the best way to avoid the queue. (It also works if you want to avoid very pretentious fashion French bloggers who moan when you walk around the room because you ruin their pictures. They arrived around 11.30!)
Please note all my pictures have been taken without annoying people walking around and without moaning in French. There are only the result of patience.
ONE DAY IN COCO'S LIFE
Coromandel
Gabrielle Chanel had a great passion for the coromandel lacquered screens which were inextricably linked to her world. Like a nomad she took them with her from the Faubourg Saint-Honoré to the Ritz, and then on to 31 Rue Cambon.
Salon Haute Couture
Gabrielle Chanel's most symbolic locations include 31 Rue Cambon, the very heart of her maison de couture, and the Place Vendôme in Paris. Her first boutique opened in 1913 in Deauville and her trips to Venice and Scotland influenced her eye and her creations.
The door remains close during the exhibition, the only way to see inside is by using the app, and it will magically open.
PLACE VENDÔME
DIAMOND
Symbol of light, the diamant is the king of stones, created in 1932 by Gabrielle Chanel, the constellation necklace radiates and its thousand lights shine through as symbol of liberty
"Diamond...they represent the greatest value in the smallest volume" - Gabrielle Chanel
N°5
The Chanel N°5 laboratory experiments with the alchemy of the revolutionary and mysterious composition of N°5. Conceived by the perfumer Ernest Beaux and created in 1921, it is a complex formula made up of approximately 80 components including the famous 'aldehydes'. It was the first fragrance to ever bear the name of a fashion designer.
"N°5 is the grammar of a style. It is the grammar of Chanel fragrances. It's a revolutionary fragrance especially in its abstraction which opened the way to the modern perfumery. The mysterious composition of its floral accords without any reference to an identified flower, makes it audacious. Gabrielle Chanel indisputably linked the world of perfumery to fashion. N°5 was the first fragrance to wear the name of a fashion designer. " - Olivier Pole
"N°5 is the grammar of a style. It is the grammar of Chanel fragrances. It's a revolutionary fragrance especially in its abstraction which opened the way to the modern perfumery. The mysterious composition of its floral accords without any reference to an identified flower, makes it audacious. Gabrielle Chanel indisputably linked the world of perfumery to fashion. N°5 was the first fragrance to wear the name of a fashion designer. " - Olivier Pole
TOTEMS
The black line, the colour red, the camellia, the pearl, the wheat and the lucky numbers are all part of Chanel's codes, symbols and icons created by Gabrielle Chanel and continued by Karl Lagerfeld. They have become emblematic to the house over the years.
"I took Chanel's code, her language, and mixed it up" - Karl Lagerfeld
The Line
Inspired by the dress from the Spring-Summer 2015 Ready-to-Wear collection created by Karl Lagerfeld, the black line highlights the white box of Chanel products; it forms the motif of the handrail curving up the legendary staircase at 31 Rue Cambon and the facets of the mirrors that cover the walls of the stairs. The line also echoes the stripes of the mariner tops worn by Mademoiselle Chanel.
Rouge
Red was one of Mademoiselle Chanel's favourite colours along with beige, black and white. "If you're sad or heartbroken, put make up on, dress up, put on more lipstick and attack. Men hate women who weep. A well-groomed woman who wears a bright colour (that suits her) in the street will have people stepping aside, letting her pass, admiring her. Red is the colour of life, of blood,. I love red. We have so much of it inside us that we should occasionally show a little on the outside". In February 1955 Mademoiselle Chanel created the 2.55, a quilted handbag with a chain strap and a red leather lining interior. It has a small central pocket for a lipstick. Red is also the colour of her Coromandel screens.
The Camellia
Mademoiselle Chanel's favourite flower is found on some of her Coromandel screens. A flower without scent. She would wear it in the buttonhole of her suits placed on the left, just over her heart. Base in rock crystal (inspired by the décor of the Fall-Winter 2012/13 Ready-to-Wear show), pearls, shells (handbags created by Karl Lagerfeld for the Spring-Summer 2012 Ready-to-Wear collection).
Paper headpiece made of camellias from the Spring-Summer 2009 Haute Couture collection.
The wheatsheaf
A symbol of prosperity and renewed creativity, wheat is a recurring symbol in the world of Mademoiselle Chanel, present in the decor of her apartment and in many of her own creations as well as Karl Lagerfeld's designs.
Lucky numbers
The world of Mademoiselle Chanel was studded with the symbols, codes and lucky numbers that were found throughout her creations. Mystery went hand in hand with fantasy spinning a complete network of connections where lucky charms bounced off one another.
The Venitian moor
Evocation of the photograph of Mademoiselle Chanel standing and turning her back on a statue of a Moor taken by Cecil Beaton around 1937.
Dress from the Fall-Winter 1996 Chanel Haute Couture collection, created by Karl Lagerfeld.
 |
| Coco Chanel, by Cecil Beaton 1937 © Cecil Beaton Studio Archive, Sotheby's London |
Greek-Pop, 2013
SENSORY ROOM
Installations created by Karl Lagerfeld as part of the Spring-Summer 2014 Ready-to-Wear show décor.
The inimitable craftsmanship of Haute Couture and its traditional techniques - including the 'toile', the pleating, the 'roulotté' (rolled edge), the lace inlay - all express the Haute Couture excellence.
"Elegance is being equally beautiful inside and outside" - Gabrielle Chanel
JARDIN À LA FRANCAISE
The maze-like 18th century garden is inspired by the intertwined C motif that Gabriel Chanel first saw in the stained-glass windows at Aubazine, the orphanage where she lived as a child. The interlocking C later became the brand's signature. This garden echoes Karl Lagerfeld's knowledge and passion for the 18th century French garden.
"Fashion is architecture, a questions of proportions" - Gabrielle Chanel
"Fashion is architecture, a questions of proportions" - Gabrielle Chanel
BEHIND THE SCENE
Installed in Mademoiselle Chanel's apartment, Karl Lagerfeld takes portraits with the re-editions of 'Bijoux de Diamants', the one and only High Jewellery collection designed by Gabrielle Chanel in 1932, and Chanel Haute Couture outfits that had been worn by a host of celebrities and specifically designed for them. The cast is an extension of July's Fall-Winter 2015/16 Haute Couture show and includes the likes of Julianne Moore, Kirsten Stewart and Vanessa Paradis.
BIJOUX DE DIAMANTS
These silhouettes combine the audacity and modernity of the complete re-edition of the 'Bijoux de Diamants', the one and only High Jewellery collection designed by Gabrielle Chanel in 1932 - with the allure and elegance of Chanel Haute Couture pieces designed by Karl Lagerfeld especially for this exhibition. A portrait gallery of international celebrities wearing the Haute Couture pieces and jewels, photographed by Karl Lagerfeld, enhanced the relationship between the two designers.
"In my profession, any means is legitimate, provided it is only used in the true spirit of fashion. I started creating costume jewellery because I felt that it was refreshingly free of arrogance, during a period that tended towards ostentatious displays of luxury. This consideration faded into the background during the economic recession, when, in every sphere of life, there emerged an instinctive desire of authenticity, and amusing trinkets were once again put into their proper perspective.
If I have chosen diamonds, it is because they represent the greatest value in the smallest volume. And my love of things that glitter has inspired me to try to combine elegance and fashion through the medium of jewellery" - Gabrielle Chanel (Paris, 1932)
Plumes
In 1910, Gabrielle Chanel obtained her first magazine cover with this hat decorated with multi-coloured feathers. From that moment onward the feather has been forever present in the Chanel universe. In 1932, the feather was one of the themes Mademoiselle Chanel interpreted in platinum and diamonds for her 'Bijoux de Diamants' fine jewellery collection.
Franges
The 1920s were characterised by speed and movement; dresses became shorter and were decorated with fringes that moved in the time of the rhythms of jazz. In 1932, the fringe was one of the themes Mademoiselle Chanel interpreted for 'Bijoux de Diamants', her only jewellery collection dedicated to diamonds. Perpetually in motion they give suppleness and lightness to the look.
Rubans
The bow was a recurring theme in Mademoiselle Chanel's collections. She inventively used it in headdress accessories created in grosgrain or velour. In 1932, she presented this theme in different forms and in platinum and diamonds for 'Bijoux de Diamants'. She later said "I want the jewel to be like a ribbon around a woman's finger..."
Soleil
In 1932, in the effervescence of the Art Déco movement, Mademoiselle Chanel presented her only fine jewellery collection 'Bijoux de Diamants' composed of jewellery pieces exclusively in platinum and diamonds. The Sun shone forth from a brooch positioned either on the shoulder or in the hair. It completed the constellations in this collection and thus became one of the symbols in the Chanel creative universe.
Etoiles
"Nothing could be more becoming and more modern!" she exclaimed, her eyes gazing upward at the Paris night sky. For their incomparable sparkle, Gabrielle Chanel chose the Comet and Star as essential themes for her 'Bijoux de Diamants' fine jewellery collection of 1932. " I wanted to cover women with constellations. With stars! Stars of all sizes..." she stated. A symbol of beauty, movement and freedom, the Comet has thus become the emblem of Chanel Fine Jewellery and never ceases to inspire new collection.
HAUTE COUTURE
Haute Couture embodies the spirit of Chanel: a unique savoir-faire, maintaining a tradition and attention to every detail that defines the exceptional quality and perfection of Haute Couture. It is also a thriving laboratory of ideas and creativity, and a powerful generator of dreams. Haute Couture transcends time and is the ultimate union between craftsmanship and innovation.
"What I like in Haute Couture is that it is devilishly done. You don't necessarily see it but a very good eye can notice it right away." - Karl Lagerfeld
MADEMOISELLE PRIVÉ
13th October - 1st November 2015
A journey through the origins of CHANEL's creations capturing the charismatic personality and irreverent spirit of Mademoiselle Chanel and Karl Lagerfeld.
Saatchi Gallery
Duke of York's HQ
King's Road
London SW3 4RY
No comments
Post a Comment