As an admirer from afar, or even if you’re lucky enough to be a guest like myself at a Chanel show, the only certainty is that you must expect the unexpected. Every season the Chanel universe evolves, morphs and transforms so greatly, that we may assume that only Mr Lagerfeld himself knows where the next destination will be.
All that can be done is to strap yourself in, stow your Gabrielle bag safely for departure and prepare to be transported .. or more appropriately this season .. to prepare for ‘lift off’.
Inside the Grande Palais, the crowd settled into Chanel’s very own Ground Control as the ‘Gabrielle Chanel Agence Spatiale’ rocket loomed largely before us. It is here that the stage was set for a journey to fashion’s final frontier, an intergalactic experience where space logic and luxury ready-to-wear fused together with NASA-like precision.
Cue music (and goosebumps) and we arrive at the Chanel solar system, where planets metamorphosize into bespoke handheld clutches, the stars are glitter-clad booties and the moon may well have been fashioned into the pearl trim circumnavigating the sleeves of the signature tweed jackets.
Mr Lagerfeld, never one to be eclipsed .. is notorious for his passion for looking forward to the future, and let’s be honest .. there may be no way more appropriate to travel there than by space shuttle, and dress accordingly in suiting sprinkled with stardust.
photography + words + creative: Amanda Shadforth
With a very special thank you to the Chanel Australia team for facilitating this journey ..
