The Many Sides Of Chanel’s Métiers d’Art 2026 Collection
Nearly six months after debuting in an abandoned New York subway station, Chanel’s Métiers d’Art 2026 collection arrived in Seoul. Presented at the new Centre Pompidou Hanwha, the showcase revealed another side of Matthieu Blazy’s first Métiers d’Art collection for the house.
Why Chanel brought Métiers d’Art 2026 to Seoul
Is Seoul the New York of Asia? In many ways, it definitely is.
It’s become a cultural superpower with its world-class museums, restaurants and, of course, entertainment industry. Some might liken its sprawling network of neighbourhoods to the borough system of the Big Apple – an interconnected web of drastically different enclaves.
Staring out of a taxi navigating peak hour in the Jongno district on a drizzly weekday evening, one can almost see glimpses of Lower Manhattan: the bright lights of eclectic shopfronts and larger-than-life LED screens; the chaotic traffic; the hustle and bustle of people from all walks of life on their post-work commute that form the beating heart of this highland-flanked yet hyper-digital metropolis.
The museum’s pristine interiors revealed another side of Matthieu Blazy’s first Métiers d’Art collection for Chanel, lending its many characters and references a modern glossiness less evident when it was first shown in New York.
Similarities aside, one gets the sense that it’s also the distinctions between the two cities that led Chanel to stage its Metiers d’Art 2026 show in the South Korean capital nearly six months after first doing so in an abandoned subway station in New York’s Lower East Side. Held last Tuesday (May 26), the event took place at the Centre Pompidou Hanwha – the highly anticipated art centre designed to resemble a giant light box with curved, translucent white panels cladding its facade.
Opening to the public on June 4 (yes, those at the show got an exclusive preview), those gleaming premises are miles apart from the grungy undergrounds of the MTA (short for New York’s Metropolitan Transport Authority). That shift in setting lent the 81-look Chanel Métiers d’Art 2026 collection – Matthieu Blazy’s first Métiers d’Art collection for Chanel – a modern glossiness less evident at the original show.
See also: Matthieu Blazy Brings Chanel Back To Biarritz For Its Cruise 2027 Collection
How Seoul changed the way we saw the collection
Centre Pompidou Hanwha’s inaugural exhibition, The Cubists: Inventing Modern Vision, made for a fitting backdrop to a collection about the multifacetedness of women as well as craft.
It’s fitting that the museum’s inaugural exhibition – already on display on show day – is The Cubists: Inventing Modern Vision, which traces the development of the art movement pioneered by Picasso, and its influence on Korean art. As Chanel artistic director Matthieu Blazy had pointed out in an informal meeting with selected press (us included) after the show, Cubism is about depicting the many facets of a subject.
With this collection, his aim was to refract – and even shatter – the notion that Chanel represents a single, monolithic type of woman. Hence the rich cast of characters he presented, from superheroes and opera-goers to university students and CEOs, with wardrobes drawing from an equally broad sweep of eras. Fashion, after all, is no longer bound by time (hands up if you wear vintage), and these seemingly disparate identities can coexist within the same person, Blazy suggested.
Traversing archetypes, professions and eras, the collection reflected Blazy’s belief that the contemporary woman is multifaceted – and free to be whoever she wants to be, whenever she wants to be.
With this show in Seoul, Chanel brought yet another perspective to the Métiers d’Art 2026 collection – one likely to resonate more deeply with those raised on K-culture than on the gritty, nostalgia-tinged glamour of New York City. And, at this point in time, that audience may be larger than one thinks. (Another noteworthy detail shared by Blazy? Korean is now among the most-studied languages in the US.)
The South Korean models who defined the showcase
South Korean supermodel Hyunji Shin co-opened the Seoul showcase in a look that appeared casual at first glance, but was in fact mostly crafted from tweed.
The model line-up, for one, had been switched up to feature some of South Korea’s most successful names. In the coveted opening spot this time was not only Bhavitha Mandava, but also Hyunji Shin – dressed like a Hannam-dong hottie on a coffee run in layers of beaded necklaces, and what appears to be an oversized flannel shirt and denim pencil skirt (both garments have in fact been crafted from tweed).
Longtime Chanel ambassador Soo Joo Park brought a touch of old-Hollywood glamour with a tuxedo-inspired look and oversized ostrich-feather fan.
Longtime Chanel ambassador Soo Joo Park took on the role of the dapper tuxedo-ed dandy (Yura Romaniuk wore the same look in the New York show), while a glowing Sora Choi surprised everyone in the closing look – the flowy embroidered silk dress revealed that the supermodel is expecting her first child.
Sora Choi closed the show in an embroidered silk dress, revealing to many guests that the supermodel is expecting her first child.
All three models are familiar faces to Blazy, and the Chanel Métiers d’Art 2026 show in Seoul offered him a welcome reunion. Seeing former collaborators evolve, he says, is a blessing – think of it as a chance to witness old friends in a new phase of their lives.
Human Chanel, human after all
House ambassador Jennie capped off the evening with a surprise five-song performance at the after-party held at Seoul’s Dongdaemun Design Plaza, dressed in a printed chainmail jacket and matching skirt, and a lurex jacquard bra from Chanel’s Fall Winter 2026 collection.
At the after-party, which unfolded at the futuristic Dongdaemun Design Plaza, or DDP, K-superstar and house ambassador Jennie showed off one of her most relaxed sides during – and after – her energetic five-song performance. She might be nicknamed Human Chanel, but, on this night, it was clear how the Chanel community (cue her first-name shout out to Blazy and the brand’s president of fashion, Bruno Pavlovsky) made her feel human: safe and at ease.
The craftsmanship behind Chanel Métiers d’Art 2026
From playful takes on tailoring to more relaxed everyday combinations, the collection showcased the remarkable versatility of the maison’s Métiers d’Art ateliers and their craftsmanship.
The maison had introduced the annual Metiers d’Art showcase in 2002 to put a much-deserved spotlight on the exceptional handcrafted skills of the ateliers in its Metiers d’Art network. At the re-see organised the day after the show, clients and the press got a close-up look at how Blazy had worked with these studios to bring a new dimension to what ultimately remains ready-to-wear (the pieces hit boutiques here from June 4) – his first time working on a Metiers d’Art collection.
Every detail and surface is an opportunity to demonstrate the savoir faire of the artisans, it seems. A stately beige skirt suit has been given a fun and youthful makeover with glass beads, and knots and stitches in raffia – all handsewn by the embroidery house Montex to mimic the texture of popcorn. The many animal-shaped brooches were created by artisans from the French goldsmith Goossens: each one sculpted, then enamelled or set with rhinestones by hand.
The playful “popcorn” texture of this suit was created by Montex artisans using hand-sewn glass beads, raffia knots and stitches.
The sophisticated two-tone slingbacks, which reference an archival design, are the handiwork of Massaro – the bespoke shoemaker that helped Coco Chanel create her iconic two-tone pumps. And even the seemingly most everyday of pieces – tweed jackets, sheath skirts, jeans (PS. they’re made of silk) – are a sight to behold, having been transformed with embroideries and fabrics handcrafted by the house of Lesage.
The enduring strength of this collection lies in how Blazy has made the artistry of Chanel’s Métiers d’Art ateliers feel universal – whoever you are, and whichever city you might be in.
In a Chanel Métiers d’Art collection, the main tool is the human hand, said Blazy during our short-but-sweet encounter. In this Chanel Métiers d’Art collection, the main strength lies in how Blazy has made that craftsmanship feel relevant to everybody and anybody – whether you’re a Master’s student taking the train to school, a mega pop star or a mother-to-be; from New York, Seoul or any other city.
We can’t think of a better tribute to the Métiers d’Art than that.