Guests for a Chanel show - one of the hottest tickets in town - always include its well-heeled Parisian clientele along with French movie stars, industry magnates and political figures.
Yesterday in the city, dozens of black limousines snaked around the Grand Palais holding up the traffic as chauffeurs disgorged the stylish arrivals. It was the second of a trinity of catwalk events to be held in the newly restored French landmark on the Champs Élysées; the third will be YSL tomorrow.
The theme of the show, "Coco Meets James Dean", combined familiar visual elements of two enduring and powerful icons, both revolutionary and rebellious in their own way.
A rakish fedora trimmed with black sequins set the mood and the tone of the streetwise glitter of the collection. No one makes raids on popular culture with more style and assurance than Lagerfeld, and everyday city items were given the de luxe treatment from teddy boy coats in bold houndstooth tweeds with oversize lapels to cycle pants in black lace, denim or gold brocade.
Huge metallic corsages and leather ankle cuffs made their own ironic statements about contemporary taste, but there was romance in the sweet white lace dresses, the black puffed out taffetas and fluttery ribbon dresses that evoked so cleverly Coco's modern femininity.
The finale was dramatic: the entire cast of models, male and female, assembled into a tableau that moved slowly like an army behind Lagerfeld as he took his regal bow, king of the catwalk.
Elsewhere new designers have been making their debuts at big fashion houses this week, though there have been lacklustre reactions to those at Celine and Ungaro. A vital new force to be reckoned with, however, is Giambattista Valli, a 35-year-old Roman, formerly artistic director of Ungaro, who presented a stunning second show yesterday under his own name at the Inter-
continental Hotel.
The clothes were masterpieces of cut and drapery that brought Balenciaga to mind. The skill lay in an effortless knotted dress gathered like a flower around the body or in a black strapless gown with full skirt, molto sexy, etched out with such artistry that it drew a round of applause from the audience. Other items that echoed the new romantic spirit included a white chiffon dress that hid flowers underneath, a frothy pink "petal" frock and an ivory ballgown whisked up into creamy, meringue bustles; aspiring brides take note.
Anne de Meulemeester scissored out black silk to reveal as much flesh as she wanted, or used splash-printed white silk to cover up the body from head to toe.