GRAND PALAIS - -PARIS - KARL LAGERFELD

GRAND PALAIS - -PARIS - KARL LAGERFELD

In today's press covering yet another most successful KARL LAGERFELD catwalk show for CHANEL which was held in the Grand Palais, one of Paris' most historic glass roofed buildings, reminds me of days past when this fabulous building fell into a state of disrepair.

When visiting PARIS I've always stayed in a small hotel in Boulevard de la Tour - Mauborg these last 35 years and regularly would walk down to the Seine  near to where the Bateau Mouches were moored crossing either on Pont des Invalides or Pont Alexandre 111 and on to the Grand Palais or the Petit Palais.

It's said that the Grand Palais is the world's largest glass domed building and being built in the late 19th century it not unnaturally fell foul of the relentless weather extremes getting into all the joints holding the glass panels in place and it started to leak very badly. I can remember visiting some 10/15 years ago for a trade exhibition of, I seem to remember, House/Interiors products where many of the display stands/booths were shielded from above by the continually dripping leaking water from the non functioning glass domed roof by large polythene sheets - not very welcoming and certainly not a turn on to muster the mood to buy!!!

The French Government I believe granted the Paris City Council substantial grants which together with the Parisian rate/tax payers enabled the engineers and construction experts to mount a very thorough restoration programme which  I believe took some 3/4 years.

Viewing the building now it looks quite magnificent and more than appropriate to house a spectacular catwalk show by KARL LAGERFELD for Chanel.

KARL LAGERFELD born in Hamburg Germany in 1933

One of the comparatively recent ART shows I attended was that of Claude Monet which was quite wonderful and I suspect never to be repeated in that the breadth and depth that the curators had managed to assemble  was fantastic and from all corners of the globe!!

1988

We show below some old adverts for Karl Lagerfeld for 1988 - 1989 - 1990

1988

1988

1988

1988

1989

1989

1989

1990

1990

1990

1990

1990

 

All images used on the Leslie Creasey Blog are from my hand clipped archive documenting 35 years of Style and Design media.  For all enquiries please contact leslie@charismatic-brands.com.