Chanel splashes plenty of colour at haute couture live show

PARIS: Colourful flowers, sequins and feathers adorned Chanel's Impressionist-inspired haute couture show in Paris on Tuesday, held in front of a live audience as COVID-19 restrictions ease in France.

Celebrities including film director Sofia Coppola and French actress Carole Bouquet mingled in the courtyard of the Palais Galliera fashion museum, where an exhibition on Chanel's founder, Gabrielle Chanel, is currently on show.

Designer Virginie Viard said she had looked to the artists Berthe Morisot, Marie Laurencin and Edouard Manet as well as to English gardens for inspiration for the autumn/winter 2021/2022 haute couture line.

Tops, dresses and skirts were embellished with floral motifs, with one frock embroidered with water lilies and a black coat adorned with pink and yellow tulle pompoms.

"There are Impressionist-inspired dresses, skirts that look like paintings," Viard said in a statement.

"I love seeing colour in the greyness of winter. I really wanted a particularly colourful collection that was very embroidered, something warm."

Models, some wearing their hair in braided mohawks, also presented colourful tweed suits - a staple of the privately owned luxury group - as well as feathered or ruffled skirts and chiffon- or lace-trimmed dresses. There were also trouser suits, in hot pink as well as cream.

Actor Margaret Qualley closed the show in a soft pink wedding dress, tossing a bouquet to the audience as rose petals fell around her.

The 26-year-old also modelled some of the collection's outfits in a short film directed by Coppola.

Dior kicked off the four-day haute couture week on Monday. The event is a mix of physical catwalk shows and digital presentations as many buyers, journalists and influencers are still unable to travel to Paris due to coronavirus restrictions.