There is a Coromandel screen at Le19M, the seven-story structure that houses the artisans of Chanel’s Métiers d’Art, that once graced the 31 Rue Cambon apartment of Gabrielle Chanel. Black lacquer inlaid with mother of pearl, the screen, one of 32 believed to be in the designer’s private collection, depicted the rolling hills and sculptural pines, the pagodas and pleasure boats of the scenic West Lake in Hangzhou, a city Chanel would never visit in her lifetime. This Coromandel screen was the starting point of the latest Metiers d’Art collection, which waxed on the idea of a journey to Hangzhou like one Chanel might have taken in her dreams, perhaps gazing at the artful lacquer and imagining herself there.
In the absence of an artistic director, the studio team took up the task of executing this season’s celebration of house savoir-faire, for which Chanel flew more than a thousand guests to Hangzhou. At the entrance, waiters with glass pots of tea and flutes of sparkling wine stood before a small fleet of wooden boats with glass windows, some with ornate gold lotus ornaments on the sides, that ferried guests like actress Lupita Nyong’o and director Wim Wenders over the water. Upon reaching the distant shore, past an expanse of trees, a pianist sat on a circular platform, lit by a single spotlight, playing songs like a Shostakovich waltz as guests crossed the wooden walkway leading out to a sleek black half-shell, where six rows of seats spread out in a semicircle. Fog on the lake set the mood, sending showgoers into the dreamscape.
At nightfall, to the beat of traditional drums, the first models emerged in head to toe black, dripping, as though they were creatures emerging from the lake, as in dreams. The long shouldered coats, beautifully cut in tweed and satin and velvet, were the first in the collection’s key proposition: layering (and lots of it), for the soigné packrat who simply must prepare for every dressing occasion. There were bags on bags on bags, carried together—mini flap bags attached to quilted totes and duffel bags, crystal clutches sparkling with dream-like stars. A series of satin-silk “pillow” bags in shades like pale pistachio and canary yellow spoke to both the travel and dream themes, alongside a certain ease of silhouette in flared pants and slip dresses, knit skirts and sweaters, elongated by incredible over-the-knee wedge boots.
Much like the collection as a whole, the references to China were elegant and restrained, letting the Chanel artisans’ craft shine through. Sleek black patent leather referred to the sheen of lacquer, while pleating by Lognon, the resident pleaters at Le19M, on all manner of skirts and dresses resembled the creases of a fan, as did a palm-sized clutch shaped like a clamshell. A Lesage tweed four pocket jacket featured velvet braided pankou knots or frog closures, as one might see on a cheongsam; other classic tweed skirt suits were worn over knit bodysuits, woven with scenes from Chanel’s Coromandel screen, for a modern twist. A tiny saddle-shaped clutch was loosely inspired by the curve of a fortune cookie. An exquisite pair of black boots depicted clouds, as one might see on a traditional Chinese painting, intricately beaded and embroidered by Lesage.
