From the ‘double C’ logo to the quilted leather handbag; the wool skirt suit to the camellia motif; the signatures of the French fashion house of Chanel are perennially chic – and in demand. After the V&A gave designers Alexander McQueen and Christian Dior the fashion blockbuster treatment, it will soon be time for Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel to have her moment in the spotlight.
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A new retrospective celebrating her impact on fashion will open at the London museum in September 2023. The V&A has billed the show as the ‘first UK exhibition dedicated to the work of French couturière… charting the establishment of the House of CHANEL and the evolution of her iconic design style which continues to influence the way women dress today.’ Tickets are now on sale via vam.ac.uk, with a standard price of £24 and a discount for those under 26, while V&A members are granted free entry.
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However, anyone hoping for tickets will have to act quickly: the exhibition has already sold out for September and October.
Gabrielle Chanel. Fashion Manifesto is based upon an already successful exhibition that was mounted in Coco’s home country of France, at Paris’s Palais Galliera, Fashion Museum of the City of Paris. Featuring over 200 looks, the showcase will also include accessories, perfumes and rarely-seen pieces from the V&A’s own collection.
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Highlights will include one of the earliest surviving Chanel garments from 1916; original costumes designed by Chanel for the Ballets Russes production of Le Train Bleu in 1924; outfits created for Hollywood stars Lauren Bacall and Marlene Dietrich; an early example of Chanel’s ground-breaking evening trousers and ensembles from Chanel’s final collection of 1971. Pieces will be displayed across 10 sections with enticing titles like ‘The Invisible Accessory’ (the creation and impact of Gabrielle Chanel’s debut perfume N°5); ‘Closing the House’ (examining the impact of the outbreak of war); and ‘Into The Evening’ (a celebration of eveningwear).
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Profiling the designer’s career from the opening of her first millinery boutique in 1910 to her final collection in 1971, the exhibition will look at how her own personal sense of style influenced her designs, and in turn, changed the way that women dressed forever. While it was the era of the corset and the full skirt, as exemplified by Christian Dior’s ‘New Look’, Chanel instead looked to menswear, and specifically the clothes worn by the British upper classes for their sporting weekends in the country. It was a world she knew well: she was in a relationship with English polo player, Boy Capel, for many years, while Hugh Grosvenor, the Duke of Westminster, famously pursued her (her double C logo is still seen on lamp posts in the borough of Westminster to this day). She incorporated many of these menswear flourishes into her work, using tweed and wool and popularising trousers and knitwear for women.
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In a video posted by the V&A on Instagram in August, curators reveal that they have started to carefully prepare the vintage treasures that will make up the exhibition. In the clip, a gorgeous, pristine black velvet dress from 1954 is unpackaged. According to the video, the dress arrived as part of a shipment of over 100 accessories and dresses from Paris, where Coco Chanel made her name. The video shows curators and their assistants meticulously examining the dress before repackaging it safely for storage until its big reveal in September.
The caption reads: ‘Unbox this vintage Chanel dress with us! Over 200 iconic pieces are passing through conservation in preparation for Gabrielle Chanel. Fashion Manifesto, opening in six weeks.’
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‘As one of the most successful fashion houses in existence, Chanel owes much to the templates first laid down by its founder Gabrielle Chanel, over a century ago,’ Director of the V&A, Tristram Hunt, said. ‘We are delighted to be partnering with Chanel and the Palais Galliera on this exhibition, which provides us with the opportunity to explore the origins and elements of this enduring style and to display little-known historic Chanel garments from the V&A collection.’
‘Gabrielle Chanel. Fashion Manifesto’ opens in September and offers a look inside the glamorous world of one of fashion’s most revered icons
‘Gabrielle Chanel boldly redefined the modern women’s wardrobe,’ Bruno Pavlovsky, President of CHANEL’s Fashion said. ‘We are honoured and delighted that the V&A, such a world leading museum and great institution, will stage the first UK retrospective of her work. By showcasing her contribution to the history of fashion as well as the incredible relevance and permanence of the Chanel style, this exhibition will highlight one of the greatest visionaries of our time.’
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Gabrielle Chanel. Fashion Manifesto at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 16 September 2023 – 25 February 2024. Presented in partnership with Palais Galliera, Fashion Museum of the City of Paris, Paris Musées. With the support of CHANEL
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