Tatler+ Chanel
The new collection, which hits the runway in Provence on May 4, offers a contemporary spin on a holiday wardrobe
You’d be hard-pressed to find someone who isn’t dreaming of a far-flung summer holiday right now, and the Chanel 2021/22 Cruise Collection offers itself as the perfect way to satiate our wanderlust until we’re able to travel freely again.
The collection has inspired travellers since it made its debut in 1919, when Vogue US hailed it the perfect wardrobe for a Biarritz beach break, and a stark departure from anything debuting on the Parisian runways of the time.
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Since then, the fashion house has been releasing small capsule collections each October and March, inspiring the fashion-forward for the summer season ahead, or a much-needed winter escape.
The cruise collections fell off the radar and remained all but forgotten until 1983, when Karl Lagerfeld sought to revisit the idea, elevating it beyond a run-of-the-mill, ready to wear collection. The collection is reimagined each year and celebrated with a runway show. In keeping with his reputation as a pioneer, the late designer debuting on a new runway each year before it hits boutiques in November.
Shows have been staged in opulent surroundings ranging from New York’s Grand Central Station to the Lido beach in Venice to the Café Marly in Paris, with the Louvre as its backdrop. This year’s location is Carrières de Lumières in the medieval village of Les Baux-de-Provence. The historic site—a former quarry—is etched from white limestone and sits in stark contrast from its verdant green surroundings.