The 2022/23 Métiers d’art CHANEL – DAKAR show is a story of creative encounters established over the past three years. Interested and involved in the creative effervescence of Dakar, choreographers, directors, musicians and writers, all together with friends of the House, are the plural inspiration behind this journey
An influential artistic capital on the international scene, particularly in fields dear to CHANEL, such as fashion, cinema, dance, literature, contemporary art and music, Dakar marks the beginning of an ongoing exchange between the House and Senegal. The city of Dakar was chosen as the location for the collection, following meetings over the past three years between Virginie Viard and friends of the House who have either lived there, are carrying out artistic projects there, or who are drawn to the city’s creative effervescence.
A profusion of colour and vivid motifs inspired by the energy of the 1970s are mixed with the emblematic codes of the House – camellias, intertwined pearls, abundant jewelled buttons and dazzling sequins, – reinvented by Virginie Viard in a creative dialogue with the artisans of CHANEL’s Maisons d’art.
Images by Malick Bodian with Ibrahim Kamara
In these images taken on the banks of the River Seine in Paris, the photographer offers a first glimpse of the silhouettes imagined by Virginie Viard and rendered sublime by the Maisons d’art: floral embroidery by Montex on a jacket entirely covered in beads combined with painted lace trousers; camellias by flower-maker Lemarié on an oversized sweatshirt in multicolour Lesage tweed; pleating work by Lognon on a big skirt worn with a tweed jacket in shades of green, also embellished with a camellia. Looks that will be presented in the heart of the former Palais de Justice in Dakar parade before the camera: flared trouser suits in tweed, a long coat and logoed jeans worn over platforms, a sequinned sleeveless jacket and matching trousers with a graphic sweater, a floral net jacket under a strassed plastron-tie… “I always knew I wanted to do this kind of photos that reflect the relationship I have with the models,” confides Malick Bodian. “I really like it when people see this in my pictures. I like it how the models are looking into my eyes, at the camera. I think it gives something very real, full of emotions, humanising the photos. I like to show fashion in the most real way and I think that’s very rare.”
A documentary series by Ladj Ly and Kourtrajmé
Virginie Viard has entrusted filmmaker Ladj Ly and students from the Kourtrajmé school in Montfermeil and Dakar to produce a documentary series about the CHANEL 2022/23 Métiers d’art show. Established in 1994 by Kim Chapiron, Toumani Sangaré and Romain Gavras, Kourtrajmé (French back slang for court métrage “short film”) is a French association and collective of artists working in the audio-visual field. Present today in Montfermeil, Marseille, Madrid and Dakar – since January 2022 – it provides training in the film industry open to all, free of charge and without pre-requisites. A symbol of Senegal’s importance in the film industry, the Kourtrajmé Dakar school guides young Senegalese directors and scriptwriters by giving them access to artistic and technical training as well as the possibility of extending their professional network. Filmed between the CHANEL Creation studio on rue Cambon in Paris, le19M located between Paris and Aubervilliers, and Dakar, a series of four videos have come out of this encounter between Virginie Viard, Ladj Ly and the school’s students. In the run-up to the show, which will be held at the former Palais de Justice in Dakar, Ladj Ly emphasises the creative freedom of this collaboration: “The idea of this project is to build a bridge between the school in Montfermeil and the one in Dakar. It’s a very real exchange. Kourtrajmé’s motto has always been total freedom. We explained the project to the students, gave them a vision and then they suggested things with their own artistic identity all while remaining faithful to the world of CHANEL.”
This episode is the first in a four-part documentary series by the students of the Kourtrajmé film schools, which were founded by Ladj Ly in Dakar and Montfermeil. The series reveals the lead up to the presentation of the 2022/23 Métiers d’art CHANEL – DAKAR collection, and takes us from the bustling streets of Paris to Dakar.
Opening credits of this episode include a photograph by Malick Bodian – headdresses styled by Jenke Ahmed Tailly.
Embroideries, sequins, hats, feathers and passion at work… The second episode of the documentary series by Kourtrajmé opens the doors of the Maisons d’art at le19M in Paris/Aubervilliers. To enter inside the new building dedicated to savoir-faire is to witness the virtuoso skills of the Artistic Directors and artisans and their devotion to details as they craft the 2022/23 Métiers d’art CHANEL – DAKAR collection.
The film of the CHANEL – Dakar 2022/23 Métiers d’art show will be unveiled on Thursday December 8th at 1pm Dakar time and 2pm Paris time, on chanel.com
