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Chanel has staged its annual M\u00e9tiers d\u2019Art show at a landmark French chateau, an 18th-century schloss in Salzburg<\/a>, and a historic courthouse in Dakar. But for its latest presentation, held Tuesday in New York City, Chanel picked a location that has seen more rats than aristocrats: a subway station beneath Bowery on the Lower East Side.<\/p>\n Instead of graffiti or smelly trash bins, the decommissioned station was given a fresh coat of burnt orange paint and lit with warm LED lights. Chanel set up a quaint newsstand and vintage turnstiles. Guests sat on rows of replicas of classic subway benches, painted in matching orange. The models arrived by train, of course, and emerged from each of the cars before weaving up and down the platform as if they were regular commuters, pausing to check for oncoming trains. The soundtrack included sounds of the city as well jazz, house music, the audio from the trailer of The Hours \u2014 \u201cMrs. Dalloway said she would buy the flowers herself\u201d \u2014 \u201cTorn\u201d by Natalie Ambruglia, and, for the grand finale, the theme song to Happy Days.<\/p>\n The brand\u2019s annual M\u00e9tiers d\u2019Art show is a Karl Lagerfeld invention from the early 2000s that is unique to Chanel. Each December, the brand honors the small, artisanal French workshops that supply its feathers, embroideries, tweed, lace, and embroidered buttons by presenting a special collection that blends ready-to-wear and couture.<\/p>\n In the days leading up to the show, only the second from Chanel\u2019s new creative director Matthieu Blazy,<\/a> the exact location was a carefully guarded secret. Rumors about a subway set spread after the invitations arrived, each with a necklace featuring two tiny silver Chanel-branded subway cars, a vintage subway map poster of the city, and a \u201cChanel Gazette\u201d newspaper where Blazy romantizes the subway as a place where students and world leaders sit side by side. Would any of them actually be wearing Chanel? Given the current absurdity of the prices \u2014 $7,000 for a bag, $2,000 for a pair of shoes, $22,000 for a jacket \u2014that\u2019s unlikely. But in Chanel\u2019s universe, the subway is a cinematic fantasy, the place where Margaret Qualley and A$AP Rocky share a love story in a new short film released by the brand<\/a> ahead of the New York show.<\/p>\n For the occasion, Chanel flew in hundreds of clients to New York City and treated them to a slate of fancy pre-show events, including a cocktail party at The Frick and a private performance of The Nutcracker by the New York City Ballet at Lincoln Center. \u201cCan you believe that Chanel made a subway station?\u201d said one client to another as they walked down to the platform, not realizing that the station was not just a set. (Tom Ford actually hosted a runway show there first, in 2019.)<\/p>\n \u201cIs that what we\u2019re doing, are we seeing it on a subway?\u201d asked Christine Baranski after she arrived on the platform, taking a minute to understand her surroundings. \u201cNo wonder they gave me hand warmers.\u201d She admitted she hadn\u2019t been on the subway in \u201cquite a while.\u201d Her look, in debut Blazy Chanel white coat and wild camelia earrings framed by her brushed back bob, was an homage to Diana Vreeland.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s a rainy day \u2014 having heavily sprayed hair that\u2019s going to behave is a good idea.\u201d<\/p>\n Chanel hosted its Metier show twice on Tuesday. Guests at the first included Chanel ambassadors Tilda Swinton, Kristen Stewart, Charlotte Casiraghi, Qualley and A$AP Rocky; fashion folks such as Anna Wintour, Inez & Vinoodh, Danielle Goldberg and Elizabeth Saltzman; society doyenne Deeda Blair; and New York characters and celebrities that aren\u2019t usually seen at such events, including Michael Stipe (\u201cI\u2019m friends with Matthieu,\u201d he explained), Dr Orna Guralnik, Julio Torres, \u200b\u200band Rosie Perez. And also Jon Bon Jovi.<\/p>\n Perhaps the most unexpected guest was Bernie Wagenblast, one of the voices of the MTA\u2019s announcements. \u201cI was surprised to get the invitation,\u201d she said before the show started. \u201cMaybe I should make a special train announcement.\u201d She usually shops at Land\u2019s End and Chadwicks, but was wearing a white Chanel coat over a black turtleneck with the subway train necklace around her neck.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t get to come to many of these,\u201d said Bowen Yang as Jenny Slate took her seat beside him. He\u2019s a Blazy fan since his days at Bottega Veneta, as is Slate, who wore a tailored tweed jacket that made her feel like Katherine Hepburn. \u201cI wish I had something original to say, but it\u2019s absolutely perfect,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The last time Chanel staged a M\u00e9tiers show in New York City, the venue was the Temple of Dendur at the Metropolitan Museum, and the collection was, well, Egyptian-inspired. (Pharrell walked the show dressed as a modern pharaoh.) This time, Blazy avoided hammering the New York City theme, presenting instead a collection of city women that felt like a continuation of his debut in textures and silhouettes, but with special twists. One bag came with a coffee cup holder on the side, another featured an image of Coco Chanel walking her dog. Another model wore a suit in a Guy Fieri-esque flame print, another a floor-length black cape as if heading to the opera. (For more about the collection, stay tuned for Cathy Horyn\u2019s review.)<\/p>\n \u201cI was pleasantly surprised,\u201d said model Linda Evangelista after the show. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t cohesive like a show usually is\u2026 Everybody had their own look, their own personality. It was all the characters you would see if you went down in the subway \u2014\u00a0 and they had lots of money.\u201d<\/p>\n Longtime Chanel client Amy Tsai and her daughter Vera Chu, in town from LA, arrived wearing head-to-toe double-C\u2019s and matching Fall-Winter 2025 boots. \u201cThis is just whatever from her closet,\u201d joked Chu, who wore a top from last year\u2019s M\u00e9tiers collection and a camelia from its 2023 show in LA. Blazy\u2019s debut has turned off some diehard Chanel shoppers who bristled at the masculine, oversized silhouettes, deconstructed techniques, and accessories like the crushed flap bag. But Tsai, who has been collecting Chanel for 30 years, and Chu are fully on board. They pre-ordered several pieces from the spring collection, including the crushed flap bag. After the show, Tsai said her favorite pieces were the Superman shirt and everything leopard print. \u201cI think it\u2019s Chanel, but with a new touch,\u201d she said, before joining the slog of people trying to make their way up the stairs. You\u2019d almost think it was the usual rush hour crush. But upstairs, back on the street, the rainy intersection was clogged with black SUVs waiting to whisk each guest to their next destination.<\/p>\n Stay in touch.<\/p>\n Get the Cut newsletter delivered daily<\/p>\n Vox Media, LLC Terms and Privacy Notice<\/p>\n