This exhibition is split in 10 themed parts which explores timeless designs of Mademoiselle Coco Chanel who liberated women from the restrictions of women’s day-to-day corset dresses; started designing ready-to-wear pieces using jerseys; invented the ‘Ford’ LBD (little black dress); designed a handbag to be slung on the shoulder to free womens hands; designed and created tweed jackets, the women’s tailored trouser suit with pockets as well as the signature Chanel suit jacket/A-line skirt twin set; executed her vision to develop an unforgettable scent (which resulted in being one of the legendary, highest grossing products to be released by a fashion house at the time), and so much more. This exhibition proved to be a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see fashion archive pieces in person. This has been curated to feature more than two hundred looks by French couturière @chanelofficial – the first time they will have all been displayed together at the Victoria and Albert Museum, South Kensington – @vamuseum. This exhibition ran from 16th September ’23 until 10th March ’24. Past V&A Members only events also included Members’ Preview: Gabrielle Chanel. Fashion Manifesto, Online Curator Talk: Gabrielle Chanel. Fashion Manifesto, Members’ Morning Views: Gabrielle Chanel. Fashion Manifesto, Coco Chanel – The Legend and the Life (Members’ priority booking), Online Talk: Coco Chanel – The Legend and the Life (for V&A Members and general public), Demystifying Museum Careers: The Role of the Project Curator (free online event).
This is posted as a #throwback to the time I visited this breathtaking and well curated exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum.
✨️TL;DR edit: This exhibition is in partnership with @parismusees @palaisgallieramuseedelamode There is a Super Realistic Walk-thru in V&A uploaded on my Youtube channel.
✨️In-depth Geeky version: I’m not going to pretend Coco Chanel wasn’t a controversial character, however this exhibition delves into the origins and elements of Chanel’s approach toward design and also documents the historic events, people & places which led to @chanelofficial being one of the biggest and most successful designer brands globally.
According to the Financial Times the brand founded by legendary French designer Coco Chanel has more than doubled in size since 2018, and is among the biggest in sales in the industry after LVMH-owned Louis Vuitton. Also let’s not forget the ICONIC Hall of ready-to-wear Women’s Suits. Also for anybody thinking “writing or commentary on topics like this is uninteresting”, “content like this is superficial” or “how can a regular person afford to an event like this?”… To state the obvious already, deep down I am a real history nerd since studying it as an undergraduate so seeing historic artefacts, photography, film, installations & documents irl was insane. Tickets had completely sold out after the first day of them being released (subsequently second wave tickets released due to demand) but V&A members get unlimited entry and queue jump. A ticket for the general public costs no more than £
