During Haute Couture Week in Paris, the past takes centre stage. In a rare public unveiling, over 80 archival dresses designed by Karl Lagerfeld for Chloé in the 1970s and 1980s are going on display — and up for auction. These pieces, once kept in a private collection, are now re-entering the fashion conversation as symbols of a time when prêt-à-porter was still finding its poetic voice.
This is Chloé before the bourgeois glamour. It’s Karl speaking through the lens of the Left Bank Parisienne — the kind who reads Françoise Sagan and plays with sheer chiffon and theatrical gestures. His time at Chloé is often described as the brand’s golden era: a period defined by freedom, intellect, and romantic experimentation with silhouette and texture.
Hosted by Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr, the auction will feature some of Lagerfeld’s most iconic designs: a silk garden-party dress with lace from Spring/Summer 1978, a tailored wool-and-silk suit from Fall/Winter 1983, and delicate ivory evening gowns embroidered by hand. Prices range from €400 to €1200, making these pieces accessible not only to museums, but also to private collectors and fashion archivists — turning vintage into a form of intimate authorship.
The exhibition will run from 3–9 July on Avenue Hoche, timed to coincide with Haute Couture Week. And that timing matters — positioning archival fashion not as nostalgia, but as part of a broader conversation about the future of clothing. In a world of fast cycles, it’s the rare, the storied, the hand-touched pieces that begin to hold real value again.
