Lover of the Russian queen
There was a cat that really was gone
RA RA RASPUTIN
Russia's greatest love machine
It was a shame how he carried on'
Rasputin, Boney M.
i promised a post on chanel and it's a day late, but it took me a little time to gather my thoughts about the collection. Ostensibly an homage to imperial Russia, Kaiser Karl pulled out all the stops for his latest pre-fall collection for Chanel, staged at great expense and in even greater luxury in Paris at the theatre de Ranelagh, was a treat for the eyes in a time of minimalism and the austere. And for those of you who say, what? but the spring/summer shows were mere weeks ago, you'd be right... but hey, this is karl after all. any chance to stage an elaborate and unnecessary fashion spectacle will be seized with two leather finger-less glove and beringed hands.
The thing about Karl to remember is that he is first and foremost a multi tasker. And so he says that the show derives its inspiration from imperial russia, and that can be see in the rich colours, the detail of the embroidery and the excess of embellishment, and then yet Karl, being karl, takes the russia theme even further through subtle, but nonetheless successful allusions, such as the Byzantine empress headgear, the soviet union black uniforms that sasha opened the show in, the plush red velvet of shoes that recalls the interior of the famous throne room in the winter palace, the prints on some of the dresses that features the beautiful sillhouette of st.petersburg, and the russian folklore costume aesthetic that involves broad shoulders, boxy shapes, flared skirts, and of course that thick, stiff embroidered fabric with heavy cross stitching in many colours. Who could miss the further allusions to russian weather with the mufflers in chanel trademark quilting, or the fur lining on the coats?
I suppose one of the biggest emblematic references to Russia was all the red and gold. I mean, nothing screams Russia to a baby boomer and cold war society than the colour RED. And it was such a lovely red too, i for one am partial to a deeper crimson, but i love me a strong fire engine red any day. And Chanel had it in spades.
The whole thing, viewed together, is just a real feast for the eyes. Chanel really puts on a show, and so the set was stunning, an extravagant and plush interior in bold blood reds. The models were all eastern european, further emphasizing the russian theme of the show. The clothes were excellently styled, paired together with a careful eye for colour and pattern and with such decadent flair. THe head-dresses were a real stroke of genius, they were glamorous without being overbearing, and although people said they were a little bit too closely linked to those used by alexander mcqueen in his fabulous autumn winter 08 collection i think it's pretty clear that these headresses were different, they were based on a real Kokoshnik head-dress, and furthermore Mcqueen's collection was not even Russian influenced, but rather British Maharajah and Indian influenced. Two very different styles and aesthetics indeed. But anyway, back to Karl's collection, the clothes were simply stunning, each and everyone of them. Beautiful materials, and even more beautiful details. I can't wait to see them in editorial, just like the mcqueen stuff, i know they will be the stuff of dreams.
The thing i love about this collection, though, was that Karl didn't do Imperial Russia as an overriding aspect of his design. Rather, he incorporated the elements that he liked, and there were many of these, of silhouette, aesthetic, colour, fabric, embellishment, detail, and melded that together with the existing chanel design aesthetic, creating a look that was a homage to imperial russia, and not a kitschy costume recreation of a different era. Sometimes when designers choose to emulate an era they go too far, erring on the side of copying, rather than interpreting. The 1920s art deco parisian aesthetic that is so characteristic of chanel can be seen in almost every single outfit, and is a more defining signature than even the interlocking double c's. The boxy, loose silhouettes, the drop-waist suits and dresses, the calf-length skirts and the fine knit cardigans were all throw backs to the 1920s and the heyday of chanel's success. But they were embellished with bright red to symbolise russia, or they were given a slight twist, one recalls nat poly's closing outfit, a boxy dress redolent of the 1920s given a russian spin with the fan motif on the high collar, a russian folk pattern. And although there were pieces that were a clear design lifted from russian folklore, such as sasha's black babushka doll dress with cape, Karl gives it a modern twist with the leather finish and the fringing.
I think what Karl has done with this collection that is so successful about it is really interpret what it meant to be part of the Imperial Russian court which was, one imagines, a place of real decadence and extravagance. Despite the abundance of different russian allusions the one thing that unites the whole collection is its collective luxuriousness, something that ultimately imperial russia will be remembered for. The Winter Palace was, next to Versailles, the most infamous court of its time, and the Russian imperial dynasty was notorious for the luxury with which they lived. Despite really loving the historical era and its intrigues, as i do marie antoinette and 18th century versailles, one can't help but sympathise with revolutionaries. It was slightly more serious in Russia too, considering that the country is so large, and the problems of famine and disease more pervasive than those that affected France around the time of the revolution. The decadence of the Imperial Russian court at the time would have been, one imagines, extremely insulting to the people. Who could help but start a revolution?
So then i got to thinking, why exactly would Karl choose to use imperial russia as the inspirational point for his pre-fall collection, especially in this time of economic crisis? And the more i look at the collection the more i can't help but think that Karl is making a bit of an ironic point here. The clothes that he sent down the runway were the height of decadence, a real study in fashion design, elegance, and the skill of the chanel house ateliers. They are, in essence, ready to wear designs with couture finishing, you can see it in the feather appliques, the embroidery, the shape of the garments and the beading on them. In this time of recession and economic crisis, why would Karl create such beautiful, but luxurious (almost too luxirious, really) clothes and parade them around in front of a society that is already more materialistic than ever before.
And the more i think about it, the more i think that Karl is making a real ironic point here. We are facing similar issues as the governments of France, and Russia, were at the times of their revolutions. Economic crisis at home, and the pressing issue of war, famine, disease and debt in the third world. Things are not about to get better any time soon, either, which is a real worry. To add insult to serious injury there is also the issue of the environment, something that people are always forgetting easily. So basically, our context is in as much hot water as ever it was. And we are just as, if not more, materialistic and decadent in our own way as the imperial russian court. They ended up in a bloody revolution that changed the course of the history of the 1900s forever, it wasn't called 'the age of extremes' (hobsbawm) for nothing.
So what is Karl trying to say? Even i after all my thinking and rambling am not sure. I'm not sure if he's trying to say that it is ironic that merely 100 years later we can repeat the actions of our predecessors and incur no consequences other than bad credit and debt. I'm not sure if he's making the point that perhaps a sartorial revolution is on our way. I'm not even sure if he is making a point, although he does criticize the fashion industry at times, by and large he remains in favour of it, despite its many negative aspects.
But like i said before, Karl is nothing if not a multi-tasker. If anyone could stage an homage to imperial russia and yet still manage to make a comment on today's society, it would be him.
ps. sorry for the millions of photos in this post, but i wanted to share with everyone the real beauty of this collection. the whole thing, plus a short review, can be found on style.com. and once again, another long post. i just have way too much to say. if i ramble, feel free to skip to the photos haha. i just like to write that's all. please forgive.
much love to you all, and hope you are having a fabulous weekend.
X
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