In 1955, Gabrielle Chanel pioneered the shoulder bag with her creation of her legendary 2.55 handbag. To learn about the exceptional skills involved in making this bag, visitors step through a futuristic air-lock chamber and find themselves inside a 2.55 handbag. With walls lined in sensuous leather, digital displays and a wall of videos showing each step of the creative process – while hearing sound effects from the workshop – the room offers a sensory, mechanical and aesthetic take on one of CHANEL’s most emblematic creations.
After leaving the 2.55 space, visitors enter the Haute Couture room, a recreation of Gabrielle Chanel’s apartment at 31 Rue Cambon complete with her famous Coromandel screens and tall mirrors that reflect a never-ending succession of images: dresses displayed under glass, mannequins and stunning cases used to deliver Haute Couture dresses to clients.
Graphic, the next room evokes today’s colourful and loud era through a game of lights and sounds. Music and noises are mixed with luminous projections of snowflakes and numbers while giant hourglasses counting time adorn the room. The floor, covered with a drawing of a watch’s face, will remind visitors of the CHANEL iconic J12 watch.
Surrounded by camellia trees, guests are reminded of Jean Cocteau’s classic ‘Beauty and the Beast’ as they re-enter the promenade area. This luxurious garden space will highlight CHANEL’s unparalleled fine jewellery collection where flowers will scintillate with diamonds in display cases.
Moving along, visitors have the opportunity to take a playful look at the most famous CHANEL icons – the lion, the clover leaf, the double Cs, the number five and the perfume bottle – through a forest of emblems denoting the CHANEL mystique. Finally, the pop art room is covered with silk-screened images of the celebrated CHANEL No. 5 bottle.
More than an installation, Numéros Privés is contemporary and limited excursion into the enchanted world of CHANEL that will dazzle and delight loyal fans of the House while intriguing new guest and clients.
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