Legend has it that Chanel adopted the camellia flower as its motif in 1913 when Coco Chanel pinned one of the white blooms to her belt. From then onwards, she recreated the 25 symmetrical petals in everything from silk to diamonds, making the camellia part of her daily uniform.
So you can imagine that Coco would be happy to see Chanel’s creative director Virginie Viard taking the theme and running with it in her AW23 collection, unveiled today in Paris. Giant camellia sculptures had been brought into the Grand Palais Éphémère as the set, as a pre-cursor to the collection, which was strewn with the motif. ‘The camellia is more than a theme, it’s an eternal code of the house,’ Viard explained in the show notes. ‘I find it reassuring and familiar. I like its softness and its strength.’
On the catwalk, silk versions of the flower were used to pretty-up Chanel’s classic two-tone block heel, or to create a decorative pocket or collar on an otherwise classic black coat. Models, including Adwoa Aboah, wore silk camellia hairclips, diamond-encrusted camellia earrings and happily swung camellia clutch bags in black, white, pink and red. Elsewhere, romantic prairie-style red maxi dresses were printed with the motif, toughed up with turtlenecks and platform boots. There was something for every level of Chanel customer: from a signature black tweed jacket that came embellished with blooms that looked so abundant you almost expected the petals to drop, to a simple white T-shirt with two ruffled flowers – a gateway Chanel purchase, perhaps? Meanwhile, watching from the front row, actors Penelope Cruz and Zoe Saldana would have been very happy about the sharp suiting and glitzy frock coats.
Later this year, a blockbuster exhibition about Coco Chanel comes to the London’s V&A museum, where we can expect to hear the story of not just the camellia flower but also her use of monochrome, tweed and pearls that have come to define the house. But, whilst this collection dialled up the history of the 112-year-old house, there were also signs Chanel is listening carefully to the demands of today’s consumer. Many brands this season have come in for criticism over their casting – last month Tagwalk’s data showed that Milan Fashion Week had 77% fewer curve models on the catwalks than London Fashion Week – so it was refreshing to see more body diversity on the catwalk at Chanel, with models such as Jill Kortleve making the case for Bermuda shorts suits as a trend you’ll want to get on board with for winter.
Not that Chanel need much help winning around consumers. Much like the camellia flower famous for its ability to bloom even in winter, so the 112-year-old luxury brand is proving resilient. The house reported double-digit revenue growth in 2022, famously increasing the prices of its signature handbags. And whilst videos discussing the price hikes flood TikTok, so too do the #chanelunboxing videos (101.5m views and counting) – all of which start with taking off the camellia flower that seals every purchase.
