I have just finished this biography of Chanel by Justine Picardie. It is an intriguing portrait, focusing on Chanel and her own power of making a fiction of her own past and experience. Chanel was a fabulous inventor not only of fashion, but herself.
What I enjoyed was the keen choices of Picardie's chapters - focusing on key elements to distill Chanel's life. I was particularly impressed with the tales of Chanel's shadow - her relationship with Spatz ( Sparrow) and Nazi during WW2 and the thorough research of Picardie to give this all the light and shade it deserved. The other story I found intriguing was the tale of the beginnings of Chanel's perfume industry and the Werteimer family that still make it today. These elements show Chanel at her conflicted best and therefore all the more vivid and complex - making her more than just the lady behind the clothes.
Whatever you think of the fashion industry or your relationship with fashion mags, Coco Chanel: The Legend and the Life is worth reading to discover the story of a modern Sybil.
1 comments:
Sounds intriguing. And I'm a little in awe of Chanel's nose. Great profile.
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