Chanel Métiers d'Art 22/23: The Liberal Fashion Code of the '70s
Every year, Chanel's Métiers d'Art collection showcases the result of the best artisan hands, where iconic handcrafted creations contribute to making each design a special piece
Yesterday, Chanel presented the Métiers d'art 2022/23 collection at Tokyo Big Sight, a space located in the heart of the Japanese capital in the Ginza district. The collection combines a variety of colours and textures inspired by the energy of the '70s with iconic house codes such as camellias, pearls, jewellery, embroidery and sequins, reinterpreted by Art Director Virginie Viard to best match the creative dialogue between Maisons d'art artisans and the culturally rich city of Japan.
The late Creative Director Karl Lagerfeld laid the foundation for this collection in December 2002 on Cambon Street. To this day, the Métier d'Art has become an important collection and a place to store and honour the heritage of the French Maison. This year, the flower fashion house Tea brought this show to Tokyo, marking an opportunity for Chanel to deepen its connection with Asian countries.
In the internationally influential cultural capital Palais de Justice last December, the Métier d'Art 2022 collection showcased the arts in areas that Chanel loves: Fashion, cinema, dance literature, contemporary art, and music.
This year, the house continues to prolong the artistic conversation with Senegalese culture and bring it all to the land of the rising sun, while creating new links with the Tokyo cultural scene. Guests were also welcomed to the space with a new interpretation of the Slow Show by choreographer Dimitri Chamblas, performed by dancers from Tokyo's Tama University of the Arts.
Chanel Métiers d'Art is not only a fashion show but also a place to foster creative dialogues, sustainable development, and technical transmission. Like its previous collection, the Maison opened a historic conversation between contemporary craftsmanship and traditional know-how between Chanel and its art-making friends living in Senegal. This year, Virginie Viard once again impressed the fashion world with a collection containing the fashion spirit of a free and unique French woman.
Designs reminiscent of the explosive and liberal energy of the 1970s in the 22/23 collection are shaped by the house's unique aesthetic gout and distinctive '70s silhouettes. Chanel's iconic fashion code was honoured on the Tokyo catwalk through simple sewing with "an abundance of floral motifs and especially camellias, embroidery techniques, the richness of colour palettes, warm, vibrant sequins accents, and sparkly accessories.”
Inspired by the vibrant spirit and rhythm of the '70s era and fashion, the collection was conceived with fitted silk shirts, flared trousers, oversized sweatshirts, and signature pointy collars of the years. Think: Boho lace dresses, platform shoes, and tweeds in a vibrant colour palette.
