Stars pay emotional tribute to Lagerfeld at last Chanel show
CARA DELEVINGNE, Penelope Cruz and Kristen Stewart were among the stars paying tribute to Karl Lagerfeld at his last Chanel show.
Emotions ran high at the autumn/winter ready-to-wear 2019 showcase for the French fashion label during Paris Fashion Week, two weeks after its creative director’s death.
Lagerfeld, a giant of the fashion industry who had overseen Chanel for more than 35 years, died aged 85 on February 19.
Paris’ Grand Palais was transformed into a winter ski resort-style village complete with fake snow and alpine cabins for the event, which started with a minute-long silence for Lagerfeld.
Supermodel Delevingne, one of the late designer’s muses, opened the show in a typically Lagerfeld outfit of a black and white checked suit with a large houndstooth coat worn over the top, with accessories including a string of pearls and a hat.
Hollywood star Cruz made what is believed to be her catwalk debut, walking the runway in a fluffy white mini-skirt with a ruffled white top.
In the closing moments of the show, and to a standing ovation, David Bowie’s Heroes played as models cried while taking one last walk together in Lagerfeld’s final designs for Chanel.
Actress Stewart, one of the famous faces of the brand, sat in the front row, wearing a snowsuit with the fashion house’s double C logo printed over it.
Supermodels Claudia Schiffer and Naomi Campbell were among the stars on the front row at the show, as well as actress Marion Cotillard and singer and actress Janelle Monae.
Delevingne had described him as a “visionary” and a “genius”, while Schiffer had said the designer was her “magic dust” and he had “transformed me from a shy German girl into a supermodel”.
Lagerfeld was also the creative director of Italian fashion label Fendi. Its final show with Lagerfeld at the helm took place in Milan two days after his death.