Black Label [EN]: Chapter 184

184. For You

Meanwhile, at that very moment.

The runway show continued. Inside the Ritz Hotel ballroom, videos reminiscent of early to mid-1900s Paris played on the walls, while models confidently strutted down the runway, dressed in outfits that reinterpreted the early designs of premium Janel [likely a high-fashion brand, playing on ‘Chanel’].

With each new model appearing, exclamations of admiration rippled through the audience.

“I feel sorry for my past self, who was so quick to assume that Karl Lagerfeld and Lee wouldn’t mesh well. This is truly a perfect harmony, a perfect reinterpretation of the brand’s history…”

At the words of a gray-haired critic, those seated nearby began to add their own opinions.

“I, too, was quick to make that assumption. It’s common to think that two geniuses clashing would only create sparks.”

“Exactly. From the start, Karl Lagerfeld and Lee seemed to have such contrasting images, didn’t they? Even if we disregard everything else and just consider their age difference, it’s quite significant. They’re practically from different eras.”

The gray-haired critic nodded a few times, bringing the conversation to a close.

He was dressed in a cobalt blue suit, a color similar to his eye color.

And yet, what could one say?

The suit, without a speck of dust or a single wrinkle, seemed to explain what kind of person he was.

Although the rings of time were etched on his face and his skin sagged with age, his eyes shone with an extraordinary light.

‘Phil Adore.’

That was the name of the distinguished gray-haired gentleman at the center of the group of critics.

Also, the name of the famous critic who was always ranked first or second when magazines that loved to rank things listed the ‘most influential fashion columnists in the world.’

He began to watch the Janel collection show with melancholic eyes.

For the past several decades, he had steadily built his reputation by writing columns that were consistently objective yet never lacked incisiveness.

Some of the columns he had written contained quite a bit of content related to designs that Coco Janel had presented during her lifetime.

“Coco Janel…”

After muttering once, he gave a hollow laugh and spoke to the critics around him again.

“To briefly summarize my impressions of this collection, it feels like two mad obsessive-compulsives have met.”

In an instant, the gazes of the critics sitting nearby focused on him.

No one readily opened their mouth, but they all shared a common look. It was as if they were asking, “Why?” with curious eyes.

Phil Adore, now receiving the attention of those around him, pointed to the runway stage and continued.

“As soon as the first act of the collection, filled with futuristic designs, ended, it felt like we were going back in time with homage outfits to the designs from the early 1900s, when Coco Janel first founded the brand. But it doesn’t end there. Karl and Lee aren’t simply lining up the outfits they’re paying homage to. The models’ outfits are preserving the ‘flow of time.'”

As the saying goes, ‘You see as much as you know,’ doesn’t it?

This was a fact that Phil Adore could notice because he clearly remembered Janel from the days when its founder, Coco Janel, was still alive.

Although his gaze was directed at the runway stage in front of him, what he was seeing now was Janel from decades ago, when Coco Janel was alive.

Whenever Janel’s new season products were released, the media was invariably plastered with stories related to Janel. At the time, Janel was a brand that had become the standard of the basics.

Weren’t most of the details that are taken for granted now born from Coco Janel?

Janel was also the first to inscribe the brand logo and name on every small subsidiary material, including buttons.

It was also Janel who attached ‘patch pockets’ to women’s skirts, created handbag straps with adjustable lengths, and transformed the image of black women’s suits, which were then commonly worn by employees and clerks, into ‘elegant aesthetic value.’

The designs that Lee and Karl Lagerfeld paid homage to respected this value of invention.

Since it’s not possible to see through the inside of the design, I don’t know what the inside is like, but it was clear that they didn’t invest in technology that would reverse the flow of time in the external parts.

What should I say?

It would be good to say that they emphasized the modern feel by changing the material of the materials and subsidiary materials, but they tried to pay as much attention as possible so that they would not feel a sense of alienation from time in the external parts?

A moment of silence passed.

Now, some of the critics who understood Phil Adore’s words began to blink their eyes repeatedly and stare at the runway stage with their mouths wide open.

As if they had faced the eyes of Medusa in Greek mythology, or as if they had all forgotten how to breathe at the same time, they were simply staring at the runway stage without even a hint of movement.

When appreciating the works of some artists, there are times when you are suddenly overwhelmed by a sense of intimidation.

It’s as if the creator is from another dimension, and they seem so great and transcendent.

For them, this was such a moment.

Soon, Phil Adore gently stroked his chin and began to slowly assemble the fragments of thought scattered haphazardly in his head.

It felt as if a thousand-piece, no, ten-thousand-piece puzzle was scattered in a difficult way.

“Hoo-”

After taking a long breath, Phil Adore shook his head lightly once and suddenly put a faint smile on his lips.

‘Yes, it’s a collection that is meaningless to analyze.’

He was now determined to stop trying to interpret Janel’s current F/W [Fall/Winter] season collection, which was unfolding before his eyes, from his own perspective.

It was because he judged it to be a sublime work of art that was meaningless to analyze with his shallow knowledge.

Instead of sitting with his arms crossed and trying to figure out which parts to praise and which parts to criticize…….

He decided to appreciate and be grateful for the fact that he was holding a place in a historic moment that would take up a large share of modern costume history and watch this Janel F/W collection.

“I dare to say that no brand will be Janel’s rival this season. But Janel will have to be nervous because they have gained a formidable enemy that they will hardly be able to beat: their past selves…….”

After finishing speaking, he leaned comfortably on the back of his chair and began to watch the collection with a relatively comfortable mind.

But why? Far from being relieved, he kept feeling like his hands were getting sweaty, so he had to keep wiping the sweat on his suit pants.

Reason? It was extremely simple.

Wasn’t the main concept of this Janel F/W season collection ‘homage’? Since the designs were arranged according to the flow of time, it was possible to roughly estimate when the collection would end.

If a model goes on the runway and presents an outfit that was a trend in the late 1960s, the show will soon come to an end.

He was just hoping that the show would never end.

Time continued to flow, and the walking continued without interruption. Finally, the moment a model exuding the feeling of the late 1960s appeared on the runway, he could not help but sigh.

He tried hard to make a nonchalant expression, but it was not easy. There were deep wrinkles between his eyebrows, and deep earnestness was lingering above his eyes.

“Ah…….”

Just when he was convinced that the end of this Janel F/W season collection was not far away.

Tak-!

At the same time as a bizarre noise echoed, the lighting configuration in the hall changed once again.

Soon, some quick-witted people sitting in the audience began to scream.

“Waaaaaaa!”

“Waaaaa-!”

They were the ones who intuitively realized that there was a third act to this collection.

Phil Adore was the same. After taking a long breath once, he looked around with a faint smile.

As he looked around the hall, he was able to feel the majesty of this Janel F/W season collection once again.

‘A collection so great that it makes you forget formalities…….’

At that time, one of the long fin lights installed on the ceiling batten began to operate. The long fin light began to emit a thick light, and the light stopped only after it touched the statue of Karl Lagerfeld placed in the center of the banquet hall.

Thanks to this, only the statue of Karl Lagerfeld was clearly visible in the deep darkness.

Soon, an edited video began to play on the screen behind the stage.

-As long as I’m in charge, Janel will never be left behind. If there’s anyone who wants to know the trends that have gone through nearly a hundred years, I’ll tell you the easiest way. Buy and read the lookbooks that Janel has printed over the past time. We’ve always been at the forefront of trends.

-Please, I beg you, make an effort to have your own style. Like us.

-Do you know when the biggest upheaval in the fashion world happened? It’s the year I was born. If I hadn’t been born, you’d all be walking around Paris in shitty clothes [crude, but reflects Lagerfeld’s known personality].

It was the voice of Karl Lagerfeld, which remained in various video materials. Since it was familiar content that often circulated on the web under the title ‘Karl Lagerfeld Quotes,’ most of those sitting in the audience were smiling.

Soon, a soft prelude began to flow out, and at the same time, what Karl Lagerfeld’s voice was saying began to become a little more serious.

-Janel is my life. The path Janel has walked represents my life.

-I thought I wasn’t stopping challenging myself. But, not anymore. I’m becoming a scared mouse. If I slip even once, I have too much to lose.

-This job is crazy. Every season, you have to gamble your entire career. It’s not even a simple gamble that you can just leave to the god of fate. It’s a fucking gamble [crude, but reflects Lagerfeld’s known personality] that involves a lot of effort, patience, and pain.

Soon.

-Take a good look. This is the present of Janel, which Coco Janel laid the foundation for and I have led.

The last voice was recorded during an interview at Paris Fashion Week last year. Of course, it seemed that few people noticed this.

It just seemed that most people were focused on the fact that there was a third act to the collection.

Soon, the prelude flowing through the speakers began to grow louder and louder.

Tak-!

Once again, a clear sound echoed and all the lights in the hall were turned on.

On the walls, instead of videos reminiscent of early 1900s Paris, videos reminiscent of present-day Paris were being broadcast.

The expectations of the critics sitting in the audience seemed to be growing exponentially with each passing second.

Soon, the moment the first model appeared.

Phil Adore began to type on the keypad of his smartphone and post a short review of this collection on his personal SNS page.

[There will be no review of Janel’s F/W season collection. To those who were unable to watch this collection in person due to busy schedules, I dare to say that not watching this collection will remain one of the ‘greatest regrets’ in your life.]