Chanel is currently hosting "Fugue at 31 Rue Cambon," a photography exhibition featuring items from Gabrielle Chanel's private collection and the Patrimoanne archive, at the Chanel Nexus Hall on the 4th floor of the Chanel Ginza Building. The photographs for the exhibition were taken by American photographer Roe Ethridge, whose work is held in numerous museums, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York. The items photographed for this exhibition embody Gabrielle Chanel's support for avant-garde artists and the friendships she forged through this support, and the exhibition reflects the brand's century-long tradition of supporting leading artists of her generation.
An exhibition of photographs from Gabrielle Chanel's private collection and the maison's archives is being held.
Chanel is currently holding a photo exhibition at the Chanel Nexus Hall on the 4th floor of the Chanel Ginza Building, featuring photographs of items from Gabrielle Chanel's private collection left in her apartment at 31 Rue Cambon in Paris, France, as well as items housed in the Chanel archive facility, "Patrimoine." The exhibition consists of a series of photo collages created for the "Arts & Culture Magazine," which was launched in June 2025.
The photography was handled by American photographer Roe Ethridge.
The photographs for this exhibition were taken by American photographer Roe Thethridge. He is a highly acclaimed photographer whose works are held in collections such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Boston, and the Tate Modern in London. His work is characterized by its experimental approach that blurs the boundaries between fine art and commercial photography, and he has built his own unique style by incorporating techniques honed in fashion magazines and advertising photography into his art works.
Born in Florida, USA in 1969, he moved to New York in his twenties and dedicated himself to commercial photography. While continuing to work across fine art and commercial photography, he realized that outtakes (unused shots) from beauty shoots could be equivalent to his artistic aspirations, leading him to blur the boundaries between the two. This idea is said to have been influenced by his interest in artists such as Andy Warhol and Lee Friedlander.
Chanel's collections have been given new life through photographs.
Representative examples of the collection photographed for this exhibition include a bust of Chanel by Jacques Lipchitz, a manuscript of Pierre Reverdi's "Poems for Misia," an illustrated dedication book by Salvador Dalí and Gala, sketches by Pablo Picasso for the ballet "The Three-Cornered Hat," and a 2nd-century Egyptian funerary mask. These items were transported to a studio in Paris, where Etheridge combined them with contemporary props and photographed them.
Through the CHANEL Culture Fund, Chanel fosters a vibrant network of creators and innovators to advance the ideas that shape global culture. This stems from Gabrielle Chanel's passionate support for innovative design and art, which has positioned her at the forefront of 20th-century creation.
The private collection left behind in the apartment, as well as Patrimoanne's possessions, embody Chanel's progressive ideas and her friendships with avant-garde artists through her support activities. This exhibition, which showcases photographs of these items, reflects the brand's century-long tradition of supporting leading artists of her generation.
