Wednesday, January 9, 2013

CHANELisation

This ambiguous masterpiece was recently caught by my camera in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. The object is fairly usual: a black greasy chainsaw. The trick is that it is branded with CHANEL logo. Well, such an oxymoron, indeed: a mix of high fashion and manual labour. The 'chefs d'oeuvre' was created by the New York born artist Tom Sachs who, among his other creations, also has Prada Toilet (1997) and CHANEL Guillotine (1998). 

Tom Sachs (American, b. 1966)
CHANEL CHAINSAW (1996): Cardboard and thermal adhesive
Fascinated with the intersections of money, power, and violence, Sachs explores the desire and exclusion inherent in a capitalist society's worship of the commodity. Here, he uses actual shopping bags from the French luxury brand Chanel to fashion a credible tool of labor - or of violent mayhem.
-  Annotation, Metropolitan Museum of Art

I am not going to judge the depth of this creative niche, but rather to focus on the branding fact itself. Putting art aside, I really caught myself on the thought that it is quite common for CHANEL to stamp their logo on the uncommon goods. And yes, obviously, the term 'uncommon goods' goes far beyond the general line-up of accessories, jewelry and perfumes. It covers croquet sets, polo helmets, golf clubs, ski masks, hand flippers (!), scooters... just to name a few. 
Have a TESSful look at what CHANEL proudly brings to this fashion world (on top of 2.55 bag:) :

CHANEL
Aluminium hand-assembled bicycle with qualified calfskin seat and three bags - 

including a make-up case with a signature logo
CHANEL
Carbon Snowboard with inlaid genuine 4-leaf-clover;
each board is unique

CHANEL
Inflatable raft holds up to three people



CHANEL
Rosewood, fiberglass and aluminium parabolic skis with CHANEL signature. 

Fit for any level of skier, including advanced skiers
CHANEL
Monochrome carbon fiber surfboard delivered
with a CHANEL signature cover
CHANEL
Two carbon beach rackets
with CHANEL signature

CHANEL
(1) Hand-painted Australian wood boomerang;
(2) - 2.2 Ibs metal hand weights with quilted calfskin cover
CHANEL
Grained rubber rugby ball
with CHANEL signature

CHANEL
Handmade, carbon-and-rosewood fishing rod and reel with CHANEL signature 

flies delivered in a quilted calfskin case. Limited edition and numbered
CHANEL
Ergonomic acoustic guitar with Spruce, marquetry inlay
delivered with a quilted calfskin case


So, HOW FAR, you think, a fashion BRAND CAN GO in terms of brand line extension?


Keep TESSTaste.Elegance.Sophistication.Style!
Your Tess
      

6 comments:

  1. Lovely blog!
    followed
    xx
    flatsmeup.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Karen! Welcome to the world of Taste, Elegance, Sophistication and Style:)
      Will be in touch!

      xxx, Tess

      Delete
  2. Oh Chanel, always want everything they have.

    xoxo,diana
    http://www.xoxodiana.com
    The Neon Factor ☠

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. True, Diana! It never hurts to have something (...everything) from CHANEL:)

      xxx, Tess

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  3. It's interesting, but it can become tacky when you go too far. Albeit, I'm sure a lot of people will buy anything Chanel!

    http://rhythmandruffle.com <3

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Fully agree, Toni. I think these boundless line extensions can dilute the brand and its positioning one day... Frankly, I was surprised to see that CHANEL does it to such extend. The good point is that production is extremely limited. This definitely helps... time will show the rest.

      xxx, Tess

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