As announced back in July, Chanel traveled to the city of Manchester in northern England to present its annual Métiers d'Art collection. Previous locations for celebrating the legendary French fashion house's savoir-faire collection have included Moscow, Dallas, Rome and Hamburg, while last year's spectacular presentation took place in Dakar. After a 2012 show in Edinburgh, Chanel is venturing back to British soil for 2023, welcoming the fashion crowd to Manchester's Northern Quarter. On a cold and rainy December night, models paraded Virginie Viard's latest creations up and down pub-lined Thomas Street, rocking a range of designs that paid homage to the northern English city – from its mercantile history in textile manufacturing to hers rich musical heritage.
Keep scrolling to read theFashionSpot's unfiltered forum members' opinions on Virginie Viard's recent gig as Chanel creative director:
“There are actually a few sweet pieces here and there.” [couturefan]
“This collection is pretty consistent in terms of silhouettes and material use. Usually Viard's collections are a mix of random crap. Normally a runway looks like it can only be saved. Viard has finally released a whole collection of non-ugly silhouettes. Of all people, Chanel should never show a bad silhouette.” [Nimsay]
“That's good. I can understand why longtime stans would hate Chanel after Lagerfeld, but that's still Chanel.” [GoldenPetals]
“Can you imagine what Karl would have done if he had presented in Manchester? Chanel + football taste = delicious! Instead we get this drab vintage Burberry with Chanel tweed. Such a missed opportunity from Viard, once again.” [RaisinBoy]
“It's not my cup of tea, but by Virginie's standards it's a good collection. I just feel like we’re missing the spirit of Métiers d’Art, which was actually a bridge between couture and RTW.” [Lola701]
“Pairing all looks with flats is one of the most disgusting things I've ever seen in fashion. Disgusting. The silhouettes are definitely better, but the prints and some color choices are a disgrace as always.” [WAVES]
“To send the same tailored tweed suits, they could well have stayed in Paris. The only great thing about Manchester is that Karen Elson is walking for Chanel again.” [jeanclaude]
See all the looks from Chanel's Pre-Fall 2024 collection here and join the conversation.
