These photos are from the exhibition of the life and work of Gabrielle (Coco) Chanel that we went to at the V&A in London a couple of days ago.
Click any image to bring up the gallery with larger size photos.
I went to the exhibition to accompany Tamara, who wanted to see it. Fashion is not top of my list of interests so I didn’t expect to be that involved. But when I looked at some of Chanel’s creations close up, I really was interested.
So again I have to thank Tamara for taking me to exhibitions I would not otherwise go to, and broadening my horizons.
Chanel made her clothes interesting, with folds and pleats and panels, and she knew what she was doing. I know that might seem a little (or a lot) coming from me who is not a couturier – but I can only speak from what I admire in design, and she was really good. She just knew what worked and why.
That’s one side of her. The other is that she grew up poor and she set her sights on making clothes for the rich. She made a name for herself through her designs and she cultivated the people who could spread her brand on her behalf. And as we know, she became a world famous name – for clothes, for perfume, for handbags, for shoes.
There were some flapper dresses in the exhibition, Chanel was born in 1883 so it was possible that it was she who made the design famous. Google says though that it was French designer Jean Patou who is
credited to be one of the first to create “flapper silhouette’.
Finally – a shout out for the curation of the exhibition. The exhibits were sourced from all over the place, from museums and private collections. So chances are the collection will not be assembled again or not for many years. So if you are near enough to go to the exhibition,, it runs at the V&A in London until Sunday, 25 February 2024
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