Fashion is fickle and it forgets fast. Let’s look back three years and remember a striped poncho walking down an empty Boulevard Saint-Germain followed by a dress made from recycled sleeping bags with the nonprofit organization Sheltersuit. It was by Gabriela Hearst from Uruguay at the height of her fashion power. Her New York collections for her namesake brand had been the shows to see, she was rising and rising, bagged LVMH investment and then got the big French house job at Chloé. She was serious about the environment and made Chloé the first fashion house to attain B Corp certification. But it seemed she was not serious enough about the house’s archive and French chic. It was a happy marriage, but one could always feel the designer belonged more to New York than Paris. So, in her first runway outing for Chloé, the German born designer Chemana Kamali made it very clear what her Chloé woman looks like. Heavily inspired by Karl Lagerfeld’s late 70’s designs for the house which oozed sensuality and freedom, Chemana offered a strong debut with sheer dresses, black patent leather surfaces, good short and long volume play, lots of ruffles and fringes, cool boots and bags and a clear statement where this woman hails from: Paris, a real Parisienne, embodying the urban myth which can make cash registers ring all over the world. Born in Dortmund in 1981, Kamali studied fashion design in Trier and at Central Saint Martins, beginning her career at Chloé as part of Phoebe Philo’s team. She rejoined Chloé in 2013 as design director under Waight Keller, when the house had its maybe best phase – loved by editors, stores and women alike. She also worked with Vaccarello at Saint Laurent and with this show she seems to follow his playbook of covering the basics first before taking flight with her own signature.
Sheer dresses
The Chloé woman under newly appointed Chemana Kamali’s direction for Chloé F/W 2024
Lots of ruffles
The Chloé women across the last decades. Collage by Josephine Ebner.
The enthusiasm?
One of the few newly appointed female creative directors at big houses, Kamali exuded an infectious and credible joy for having landed her dream job on her third return to Chloé. This joy translated on the runway.
Chemana Kamali brought infectious enthusiasm to her first collection for Chloé
We loved?
Apart from channeling archives and updating them, debut shows are always great when they have a few memorable pieces. Kamali made a beautiful hybrid harem meets cigarette leather pant where the chiffon fabric is billowing out from under the knee for a cool look.
Hybrid harem meets cigarette leather pant
The sheer trend?
Is it helping to de-sexualize breasts or not? The discussion is in the air after Saint Laurent’s transparent manifesto three days ago. But still, Kamali seems to have a radar for where fashion is going, and she had lots of dresses and blouses which bared all. And big difference. She cannot be labeled misogynistic as her old boss.
Sheer blouses and dresses
The verdict?
As shown in her first look, this designer knows her craft and how to play with fabrics, surfaces and lengths. A cut off poncho over a cut off dress with ruffles cascading down to the floor from the arms was very accomplished. But at times the looks felt formulaic and too devoted to the archive. More Chloé 2025 please and not 1979.
Kamali’s first look at Chloé F/W 2024
