CHANEL HAUTE COUTURE - Lot 151

Lot 151
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Estimation :
30000 - 50000 EUR
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Result : 71 500EUR
CHANEL HAUTE COUTURE - Lot 151
CHANEL HAUTE COUTURE Large evening gown in embroidered gold lace by Lesage, Spring-Summer 1996 A fine and important embroidered gold lace evening gown by Lesage, Spring-Summer 1996, labelled and numbered 75476, the gold lace embellished by Lesage with around 10,000 shaped, pierced sequins in shades of gold, red, silver and purple to form fruiting vine motifs, with lining of nude chiffon, Desrue gilt filigree medallion buttons inset with pink and pale blue stones, bust 86cm, 34in, waist 66cm, 26in, hips 86cm, 34in; with Gripoix gilt chain belt, signed and numbered 96P, the square buckle with green, blue and wine pâte de verre stones; together with a pair of matching embroidered shoes made by Massaro, approximate size 40, (4) The dress took 120 hours to make with a further 300 hours for Lesage to embroider in shimmering paillettes and beads. It was made with a matching belt, shoes and bag (see following lot 152). The dress is Lagerfeld's re-imagining of a dress originally designed and worn by Coco Chanel in 1937 and in which she was immortalized by English society photographer Cecil Beaton. Lagerfeld mused that the dress had originally been made when rumblings of another world war were to be heard in Paris: "There is something about playing with frivolity in the face of danger -It's Survival Chic"; This dress perfectly captures not only the original design, down to the matching gilt chain belt, but reflected Lagerfeld's deep understanding of the history of the brand and his respect for its founder's consummate taste and style as he made no radical changes. It is the perfect tribute from one designer to another. To further illustrate this gown's timeless quality Madame Ayoub wore it to attend the Cannes film festival, as recently as May, 2023. As Coco herself once said, "Fashion changes, Style endures"; The importance of the iconic 'Gold dress' to the House of Chanel was recognised by Virgine Viard's commission of an identical copy from Lesage for use in Chanel's 2020 press campaign, featuring Marion Cotillard. The actress stated, 'It's a reinterpretation of a dress Gabrielle Chanel wore. It's a gem quite simply.' Exhibited: An identical dress was included in: - "Chanel"; Metropolitan Museum of Art, 5 May - 7 August 2005 - "Karl Lagerfeld A Line of Beauty"; Metropolitan Museum of Art, 5th May - 16 July 2023 Published: - "Chanel"; exhibition catalog, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Yale University Press, 2005, front cover -Patrick Mauriès, "Chanel: Les Campagnes Photographiques de Karl Lagerfeld";, Éditions de la Martinière, Paris, 2018, p.236 -Alexander Fury: "Chanel the Impossible Collection", published by Assouline, 2019 pl 78 - Photograph of this exact dress from the Mouna Ayoub collection -Patrick Mauriès and Adelia Sabatini, "Chanel Catwalk: The Complete Collections";, London, Thames Hudson, 2020, p. 219 -[online] Hannah Coates, British Vogue, 'Marion Cotillard's First Chanel No 5 Campaign Features A Very Special Dress', 27 October 2020 - "Karl Lagerfeld A Line of Beauty"; exhibition catalog, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Yale University Press, 2023, pp 143, 144 for image and original fashion sketch. Provenance: The Mouna Ayoub Collection Images All rights reserved
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