One thing you can trust in with Karl Lagerfeld is his preternatural ability to put his finger on topics du jour. To assemble in the Grand Palais and see a giant space rocket in front of us was to know he’d done it again. What was this—a Chanel show about to blast off on a mission to take No. 5 to one of the seven newly discovered Earth-like planets orbiting the Trappist-1 star? Even fashion’s astronomer in chief couldn’t possibly have anticipated NASA’s announcement on February 22 that there may be life-supporting planets out there. Still, his metaphor for the times was already on the right path: It is the most futuristic of fashion’s current escape plans. Doesn’t the idea of getting off Earth altogether suddenly feel like a rather cheery thought, considering the mess it’s in?
Lagerfeld is never one for gloom and despondency, and he resolutely hates looking back. Logical, then, to go forward—to the Chanel universe and beyond! The starship Chanel crew will be wearing glittery lunar boots with co-respondent black tips, tweed tunics with standaway collars, Bermuda shorts, “insulated” silver leather suits, and metallic padded space stoles. When the craft navigates to the dark side of the moon (perhaps), eveningwear will consist of black-and-white chiffon “space person” prints and garments embroidered in constellations of Chanel pearls. Satellite bags will be carried.
As a spectacle of the season (after a grueling month of shows), it made for an amusing performance—especially when, in a feat of pyrotechnics and hydraulics, the starship Chanel really did appear to lift off.
