Summer of Chanel

In his New York Times interview on Tuesday, fashion legend Karl Lagerfeld was apparently in the mood to talk about Coco Chanel. This seems apropos, given that, under Steidl Photography International, he recently published a book of photographs of HRH, Coco Chanel, during the summer of 1962.

The book is entitled Mademoiselle: Coco Chanel/Summer 62 and targets a period that--in hindsight--is somewhat bittersweet, particularly in light of Lagerfeld's observation that it was "her last summer as the queen of fashion." The images selected for the book come from a collection of photographs taken by photographer Douglas Kirkland when he was on assignment in Paris for the American magazine, Look.

As you may know, j'adore Chanel--so I couldn't be more excited for this book. I feel it's an interesting opportunity to observe images of Chanel during a transitional period--for her personally, as well as for fashion at large. The best part is that, as viewers, we can find ourselves guided by Lagerfeld's observations (in both his written introduction and photograph captions) towards a better understanding of Chanel as a person, a designer, and a house of couture.

Lagerfeld writes, "Images left behind are in the end stronger than truth and facts." As fashion faces yet another period of transition, I can't imagine a more fitting time to embrace this story in pictures. As always, all hail Chanel!

Cover image from Mademoiselle: Coco Chanel/Summer 62, courtesy of Amazon(www.amazon.com); the book is available online--and is now on sale for $29.70!