Once again Saatchi, one of London’s most influential galleries focuses its attention on luxury. Last spring, it hosted an exhibition dedicated to Hermès under the moniker Wanderland, showing elements of the eclectic collection the French firm offers in its boutique Paris’s Faubourg Saint-Honore, which includes objects as diverse as a bicycle, a suitcase, a pair of boots or a watch.
(L) Exhibit invitation; (R) Gabrielle (Coco) Chanel.
Since October 13, Chanel took over the exhibition space. It is not the first time the firm’s work will be seen at the Saatchi Gallery. In 2012, Karl Lagerfeld, creative director of the company for the last 32 years, and Carine Roitfeld, former director of Vogue France, occupied the second floor with an exhibition called La Petite Veste Noire, an ode to one of the most iconic Chanel pieces: the little black jacket. And in 2014, the artist Sam Taylor-Johnson placed on Saatchi`s walls photographs of Chanel`s private apartment at Rue Cambon in Paris.
The new exhibit, called Mademoiselle Privé, explores the origins and history of the French label, from its founding at the hands of Gabrielle (Coco) Chanel until the arrival of Karl Lagerfeld. It is a story based on boldness, freedom and innovation. Displayed throughout the gallery`s three floors will be reissues of the fine jewelry collection Bijoux de Diamants (the only group of jewels actually created by Coco Chanel in 1932), as well as everything associated with the legendary Chanel No. 5 perfume.
For the public anxiously waiting to enjoy this free exhibition, the only drawback is that it only runs until November 1, so we encourage you to come out and see it as soon as you can.
It is clear that fashion and design firms are always eager to be showcased. While Chanel presumes in London, others do so in major museums, renowned galleries or shops, where they can proudly display of their own legacy.
1. Chanel workshop.
2. Chanel workshop.
3. The emblematic Chanel Number 5.
Chaumet, a jewelry firm with 235 years of history that currently belongs to the French group LVMH, has just opened a museum—although with an expiration date— in their space at Place Vendome in Paris, in an 18th century building. The museum will remain open until January.
For its part, the watchmaker Breguet—part of the Swiss Swatch Group— has done the same in the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, California, near the Palace of the Legion of Honor. With so many milestones in the history of watchmaking and the great innovations that have marked the development of mechanical watches as an industry, so it is only fair that they should be displayed in a large museum space. ■
