The Art of Artlessness

There is an iconic image of Coco Chanel side-eyeing the camera, smoking, and sporting pearls carelessly draped over her back--as if she were wearing the necklace backwards. She is the picture of defiance. In this particular image, the story of Coco's life unfolds from those sharp eyes and straight lips; her body language speaks volumes to her struggle, her triumph, and the mark that life left upon her. She has defied all odds--not by luck, but by willpower, confidence, and an unstoppable drive. Chanel has been an inspiration to Frenchwomen and women around the globe to take control of their own lives, starting in their wardrobes.

There are some obvious parallels between designer Coco Chanel and model Inès de la Fressange. The two are confident and attractive, and have even worked together in the industry. Inès has acted as the face of Chanel's handbags and fragrances, but more importantly, the two women have acted, almost accidentally, as a face of freedom for women. Their most important platform has been a movement away from perfection and the status quo. The result: a personal liberation from the binds of classical womanhood and femininity. Some of these binds are found in a literal sense as Chanel encouraged doing away with the corset and ten pound hat and as Inès preached that it is okay to wear flats with a pencil skirt. Comfort is the luxury in both of these trendsetters' lives. 

While studying the examples of Coco Chanel and Inès de la Fressange, and knowing that they enjoy practicality and comfort over glam, I have begun to wonder how they still remain to look so glamorous. In the 21st century, comfort brings a bed, sweatpants, and a cup of coffee at the forefront of one's mind. The true mystery is just how these women have balanced comfort and class, function and fabulous-ness. Coco Chanel once said that "jewelry should be viewed with innocence, with artlessness, just as we enjoy the site of an apple tree in blossom at the side of the road as we speed past in a motor-car." Artlessness has never been the first word to surface when jewelry is mentioned. In fact, when looking at jewelry as amazing as Chanel jewelry, it might be the last. What I realized is that the confidence to look artless--to wear an expensive pearl necklace backwards and to lounge in a suit worth thousands of dollars--is a form of art in and of itself. These iconic women's styles reflect the fleeting happiness we experience as we speed past "an apple tree in blossom on the side of the road." Chanel did not create a style that needs to be pondered and analyzed like a Monet in the Louvre, but rather created a form of art that brings a quick smile to a passerby and confidence to the woman on the other end of that exchange.

Coco Chanel & Inès de la Fressange