Androgynous and cinematic, the Chanel Fall-Winter 2024/25 Ready-to-Wear collection imagined by Virginie Viard draws its femininity from Gabrielle Chanel’s own wardrobe and its masculinity from the subtle elegance of winter sojourns by the sea.
Broad-shouldered peacoats and long dressing-gown-style belted coats are worn over tweed suits – box-pleated skirts, culottes or cropped trousers, drop-front trousers or trousers with tabs at the back.
Chunky sailor sweaters and knits featuring the landscapes of Deauville alternate with silk blouses with middy collars, herringbone prints, low-cut tops with flounces, jumpsuits and negligees whose delicacy evokes gentle waves breaking and a soft wind blowing.
The palette takes its vibrant or pastel shades of pink, mauve, orange and pale blue from the ever-changing colours of the Deauville sky, along with brown and gold lamé. 35mm film and cinema tickets: prints refer to the town’s connection with the 7th art, its American Film Festival and Claude Lelouch’s A Man and a Woman, to which Inez and Vinoodh’s film opening the show pays tribute.
“The silhouette of David Bowie, the magnetism of film stars walking on the sand, like Anouk Aimée, a great friend of Gabrielle Chanel… this collection pays homage to these familiar figures,” says Virginie Viard.
The iconic bags are omnipresent, as are the pastel-hued wide-brimmed hats, colourful silk scarves, heeled knee-high boots and thigh-high boots in sheepskin, a direct nod to Anouk Aimée’s coat in A Man and a Woman.
“It’s a very warm collection, with layers of materials, colours and volumes. It pays tribute to Deauville, the legendary place where Gabrielle Chanel’s destiny changed forever.”