Closing Paris Fashion Week, Matthieu Blazy presented his first collection as Creative Director of Chanel. A moment filled with expectation, marking the beginning of a new chapter for one of the most legendary houses in fashion history. Yet instead of an overwhelming spectacle, Blazy delivered something far more powerful: modernity and a deep understanding of what Chanel means in this day and age, reinventing the established maison.
For years, Chanel has existed as both a symbol of timeless refinement and, paradoxically, a brand slightly caught in its own reflection. The signature tweeds, pearls, and buttons remained undeniably beautiful, but they began to feel like everlasting designs rather than living, changing garments, leading audiences to yearn for a spark and a rediscovery of the brand’s extraordinary pulse. Last night, that pulse returned.
The show opened with an ensemble that said everything about Blazy’s approach: a precisely tailored, boxy suit jacket paired with matching suit trousers. It was confident and poised, but also free, as though the Chanel woman had been allowed to exhale a little after years of the same old tweed cardigans and formal attire the world seems to have moved on from. Throughout the collection, Blazy played with contrasts: crisp shirts with under-hem details of the traditional Chanel metal links, soft knitwear layered under sculptural outerwear, and evening pieces that made a definite statement with extravagant feathered skirts trailing along the floor. Even Chanel’s most sacred code, the handbag, was reimagined with a more abstract approach, crushed and frozen in time.
The setting was a cosmic tableau suspended beneath the Palais’ historic glass canopy that immediately recalled the grand theatricality once synonymous with the house. Blazy’s mission wasn’t to reminisce on the nostalgia that Chanel has circulated for the last decades, he had intent to renew it all for the modern era. He has long been admired for his precision and quiet devotion to craft – after reinventing Bottega Veneta, he applied that same discipline to Chanel, rewriting it in his own language. The music struck a chord with the audience, bouncing their heads to the beat of the 12″ Version of ‘Rhythm is a Dancer’ by Snap!, a disco anthem that worked seamlessly with the atmosphere of the show.
The collection felt aware of its history, with touches of the past shining through the new era of the French fashion house. His deep respect for craftsmanship and materials, honed across his years at houses like Margiela, Céline, and Bottega Veneta, is evident as his next mission lies upon the horizon.
Debuting at the esteemed label, Blazy has recalibrated the brand’s notable aesthetic, reminding us that Chanel’s power has never been buried in nostalgia, but rather in its ability to make elegance feel inevitable and long-lasting. This collection flew beyond expectations and redefined the name Chanel as we know it today.
