HAD KARL Lagerfeld today’s harsh environments in mind or the effects of climate change in the Arctic with his latest collection for Chanel?
The massive setting in the Grand Palais yesterday of a melting glacier drew a round of applause when unveiled to an audience that included the French singer and actor Vanessa Paradis in the front row.
Whatever the motives, he fused elements of traditional Inuit dress, the fur, the boots, the fringing and braiding, onto signature Chanel suits and motifs, using the cold icy colours of the north with incomparable elan.
It showed in the snowy tweed suits glistening with crystal jewellery, in inky blue polar bear coats and in the deep fur trims on sleeves and jackets.
But this was a far-reaching and far-ranging winter collection, with dizzying variations on the skirt suit and rich textural contrasts.
Typical were white mohair dresses stained with blue, laden with icicle jewellery and worn by pale-faced models with windblown, backcombed hair. A cool collection in every sense.
The freezing temperatures at the YSL show echoed the chilly response to a disappointing collection.
Coming on the eve of the YSL retrospective due to open today at the Petit Palais, the largest ever dedicated to the late French couturier, it was a chance for creative director Stefano Pilati to show his muscle.
There were appealing items like a cowled black dress of immaculate cut and an elegant trouser suit with side-slit sleeves, but the rather monastic air of the whole presentation with its swinging chains and endless procession of cowls and capes, many in clear PVC, seemed more religious and reverential than relevant.
Where was the joie de vivre?
Revamping a luxury heritage brand has also been the challenge for UK designer Hannah MacGibbon doing a capable job at Chloe. Her collection played with masculine tailoring in a girlish way confining her colour palette to camel and majoring on handsome coats and cashmere dresses whose style occasionally brought Ralph Lauren and casual American sportswear to mind.