Inside Chanel’s Cruise show in Dubai: Oilcan handbags, crescent double Cs and more!
See the Chanel photos from Dubai »
Talk about an oasis. Over the course of eight weeks, Chanel turned a completely barren, man-made desert island off the shore of Dubai into a party venue for the unveiling of its 2015 Cruise collection.
“This probably cost more than any film I’ve made” remarked Tilda Swinton, one of 1,000 guests who boarded a wooden “abra” launch for the 5 minute journey across the placid Arabian Gulf. A sand pathway led to a lattice facade of stylized double Cs.
Photography courtesy of Chanel
Chanel Cruise Dubai
Inside the air-conditioned hall, built just for the night, sunken banquettes surrounded low tables topped with ornate lanterns and tiers of savoury pastries. The crowd was a veritable United Nations, from Asian men with Chanel Boy bags slung around their suits to cloaked ladies with violet and emerald croc 2.55 purses popping against their black abayas.
The show itself was a clever blend of the modesty and bling that reflects Arab life today: gold leather jeans, tweedy shorts over silk leggings, geo-floral prints inspired by 11th and 12th century mosaics, clear-soled shoes illuminated from within, the Dubai skyline sequinned on tunic hems and Chanel Cs slimmed into crescent moons and pinned into halos of loose curls. Quilted oilcan handbags were a witty nod to the region’s resource-based wealth.
Karl Lagerfeld, who customarily departs 30 minutes after each show, hung in for Janelle Monae‘s fiery post show performance while others took to the Bedouin-style tents outside where hookah pipes were offering apple and strawberry vapours.
A perfect blend of east/west, past/present all leading, no doubt, to a solid gold future for the house of Chanel.
Bernadette Morra is the former editor-in-chief of FASHION magazine. She has been covering the Canadian and international fashion scenes for more than 30 years, first at The Toronto Star, then at FASHION. Over her long career Bernadette has interviewed many fashion world legends including Karl Lagerfeld, Marc Jacobs, Linda Evangelista, Cindy Crawford and Gianni Versace.
Fashion FWD:
The next best thing to being a fashion editor - BTS access to trends, products & news.