FROMENT, JEAN LOUIS
Culture Chanel interprets Mademoiselle Chaners universe through her designs, her iconic pieces and her literary and artistic inspirations. Throughout her life, Chanel was close to the greatest artists of her time, including poets Jean Cocteau and Pierre Revert:ly, painters Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dali and composer Igor Stravinsky. The creative heritage of the House of Chanel continued through the decades from Mademoiselle Chanel to Karl Lagerfeld, in the form of a dialogue established between artists's and authors. The impact of these individuals and others on Chanel's designs is explored in detail throughout the book; examining this tradition of collaboration and inspiration. The book is organised around five themes central to this history of Chanel; Origin, Abstraction, Invisibility, Liberty and Imaginary. For example, the Origin section examines how traces of the orphanage in Aubazine where Chanel was abandoned by her father. The Cistercian abbey there can be identified in both her designs and her contemplative, almost spiritual approach to her work. The stained glass windows of the church had a pattern that inspired the double C, the iconic symbol of Chanel. Designs, artworks, letters, documents and rare archival photographs come together to illustrate the creative dialogue between different eras and inspirations. Culture Chanel demonstrates the bold path of a brand that has always known how to express the essence of its times, a fashion house that continues to be an enduring symbol of modernity.
