Chanel unveiled its cruise 2022/23 resort collection on the beach at Monte Carlo on Thursday, in a show opened by French-Algerian model Loli Bahia.
Bahia’s look, a red and white checkered tweed jacket and matching trousers, set the tone for a collection inspired by the colours of the tiny nation's flag and monied lifestyle.
Drawing on the nation's famous casino and grand prix, Chanel’s artistic director Virginie Viard scattered checked flags across clothes and sent out models clutching racing helmets, with Gabrielle Chanel’s lucky number "5" embossed on the side.
Blouson jackets came with racing suit fastenings, softened with a corsage, and there were pit-style jumpsuits aplenty, upscaled in elegant tweed and sequins, and finished with cross body bags and logoed trucker caps.
The runway itself ran along the beach and out on to a pier, where guests watched from discreet seating, with the Mediterranean Sea providing the ideal backdrop for the jaunty, breezy collection. Built around a sense of lightness — even when created in tweed — the clothes felt young and easy, with plenty of cropped jackets, roomy shorts and straight cut, uncomplicated dresses.
In the days running up to the show, Chanel released a teaser created by Sofia and Roman Coppola, starring French-Algerian actress and Chanel ambassador Lyna Khoudri, along with models Blesnya Minher, HyunJi Shin, Mariam de Vinzelle and Vivienne Rohner. Khoudri, who has starred in films The French Dispatch and Haute Couture, made her modelling debut in the show, walking in a logoed white jumpsuit, worn over a red checkered top.
The Chanel line-up included house favourites Jill Kortleve and Mariam de Vinzelle, as well as in-house fit model Amanda Sanchez, who for the past two decades has been the first person to try on any new Chanel design. Also walking was British-Moroccan model Nora Attal, who was dressed in a flowing gown decorated with checkered flags.
Watching the show were French-Congolese rapper Abd al Malik, Kristen Stewart, K-pop star G-Dragon, Vanessa Paradis and Charlotte Casiraghi, who is 11th in line to the Monaco throne.
