Can we compare her to Martin Margiela or Rei Kawakubo as designers in the same category? In the late 1980s, when the Chanel brand rose again in Lagerfeld’s hands, they sparked a fashion revolution. Arzalluz said, “I don’t know, but what I can tell you is that I took Margiela to visit the Chanel Fashion Manifesto exhibition held in Paris. His way of appreciating each piece of fashion made the visit a wonderful experience. His observations gave me a new understanding of Chanel ladies. The experience of watching the exhibition with him and others was different.” She said that Chanel ladies were a woman who designed clothes for herself, “because of this, she understood what other women wanted, needed, and expected. Margiela’s starting point was different from other avant-garde designers. Their goals are also different from those of Madame Chanel. However, they are equally iconic and resonate with Chanel in the history of 20th century fashion
Arzalluz continued, “In 1939, Chanel temporarily suspended the brand’s operations. In 1954, at the age of over seventy, she chose to return to the Parisian fashion industry. At that time, she seemed to be out of touch with the times and the New Look represented by Dior, but she quickly became powerful again, with the same ideas and vision as in the 1920s, launching fashion different from Dior. She was able to climb to the peak of her life in two completely different historical stages, which was really impressive. I think the key is that she accurately understood how to reach women and had her own views on women’s needs – she didn’t think women needed tight corsets
