Chanel Métiers d’art 2024, the show in Hangzhou and the short film with Tilda Swinton

Chanel brings its new Métiers d'Art collection to Hangzhou , China , transforming a historic city into a stage of extraordinary elegance. Since 2002, each Chanel Métiers d'art collection has celebrated the savoir-faire of the Maisons d'art gathered at le19M , involving embroiderers, jewellery designers, goldsmiths, pleaters, shoemakers, hat makers and milliners, testifying to the French house's commitment to artisanal heritage.

Among the seven capitals of China in the 10th century, during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period , Hangzhou was the capital of the Wuyue kingdom , ruled by the Qian dynasty . This event, dedicated to artisanal excellence, celebrates the unique bond between the French fashion house and Chinese tradition. Although Gabrielle Chanel never visited China, the images depicted on the Chinese screens that she loved and collected throughout her life - which still adorn the walls of her apartment at 31 rue Cambon in Paris - profoundly influenced her aesthetic imagination. Symbols of Chinese culture appear frequently in her creations of the 1950s and 1960s.

One of the most precious lacquered screens in Coco Chanel 's collection, present in her office, depicts the city of Hangzhou and its lake. Having become a tourist attraction as early as the Tang Dynasty (618–907), the body of water inspired poets and painters with its natural beauty. During the Song Dynasty (960–1279), when the city became the dynastic capital, the lake became one of the most visited destinations in China. Introduced to Europeans by Marco Polo, the lake has long been a symbol of Chinese urban culture.