Simply put, CHANEL Haute Couture makes my heart skip a beat. The artistry, craftsmanship, and imagination that goes into these literal works of art is staggering. Season after season, I write love letters to each new collection because season after season I am consistently awed by the incredible creations that come out of the CHANEL Haute Couture ateliers. Needless to say, Virginie Viard’s CHANEL Fall/Winter 2020/21 HAUTE COUTURE collection is another triumph from this legendary Couture House.
For her previous Haute Couture collections, Viard seemed to be incredibly inspired by her fresh vision of the modern Chanel woman as well as the heritage of the brand and its founder, Gabrielle Chanel. However, for the Fall/Winter 2020/21 collection, Viard looked to another legendary figure within the annals of CHANEL history, Karl Lagerfeld. ” I was thinking about a punk princess coming out of ‘Le Palace’ at dawn. With a taffeta dress, big hair, feathers and lots of jewelry…Karl would go to ‘Le Palace’, he would accompany these very sophisticated and very dressed up women, who were very eccentric too” notes Viard.
It is this dandyish style that Viard has mixed so beautifully with the understated elegance that has come to distinguish her work. The Chanel Fall/Winter 2020/21 Haute Couture collection is a celebration of exquisite opulence but mixed with a refined simplicity. The incredible work of CHANEL Métiers d’art partners like Lesage, Motex, Lemarié, and Goossens adorn the pieces of the collection. Intricate embroidery, sequins, straps, stones, and beads dance and shimmer across beautiful tweeds, hand painted lace, suede, silks, and satin. The silhouette of the collection is decidedly romantic. Cinched waists and billowing skirts are straight out of the Grande Siecle. However, there are also pieces that are streamlined in their elegantly minimal lines.
Paired with pieces from CHANEL High Jewelry collections (spot the tiara!), the CHANEL Fall/Winter 20202/21 Haute Couture collection is nothing short of a fashion fantasy. It represents not only the incredible technical skills of the House’s and its Métiers d’art partners but also the romance of Haute Couture.
Photographed and captured by Mikael Jansson
© CHANEL
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