Chanelophiles rejoice the iconic fashion house will be taking over London’s Saatchi Gallery in an exclusive exhibition titled Mademoiselle Privé. As characterized on the gallery’s website, the exposition is “a journey through the origins of Chanel’s creations capturing the charismatic personality and irreverent spirit of Mademoiselle Chanel and Karl Lagerfeld.” It will focus on the brand’s haute couture, Chanel No. 5 perfume, and the 1932 Bijoux de Diamants Collection, the first and only jewelry collection to be created by Coco Chanel.
Saatchi Gallery, London.
In order to showcase Bijoux de Diamants, Karl Lagerfeld enlisted the help of his modern day muses, celebrities and socialites that embodied the essence of Coco Chanel, for a photo shoot. Lagerfeld shot the all the portraits, which included Chanel’s ambassadors such as, Kristen Stewart and Keira Knightley, as well as actresses Lily-Rose Depp and Julianne Moore, among others.
“I’m sure as an artist Karl works instinctively and compulsively the way he does in all media. But really as a photographer there is such a naturalism, like, when he sees something you could be done in five minutes and you don’t even realize you’ve finished the entire thing because he just knows sort of exactly what he wants,” Actress Kristen Stewart said of the iconic designer.
1, 2. Views of the exhibition.
3. Exhibit invite.
Bijoux de Diamants originally debuted during the Great Depression with an immense celebration that tried to create a powerful statement about the luxury fashion industry and the class that consumed it at the time. Interestingly though, the collection was inspired by theme of the celestial forms which alluded to a sort of hopeful meaning for the future – a unique perspective only Chanel could dream of.
“It’s a really stunning collection and the fact that it was designed so many years ago and yet it’s still so current is always the magic of Chanel,” said actress Keira Knightley.
Coco Chanel.
Karl Lagerfeld.
In preparation for the showcase, Chanel has released a teaser video featuring behind the scene footage of the photo shoot. Watch it to see more from Karl’s modern muses and the stunning Bijoux de Diamants collection.
Mademoiselle Privé will be on view until November 1st at the Saatchi Gallery in London. ■
