From as early as the 1930s, Gabrielle Chanel used a baroque decor with gilt wood paneling for her fashion shows at 31 rue Cambon. The two pilasters are 17th-century Italian sculpted caryatids, which today stand on both sides of the mirror in the dining area of Mademoiselle’s apartment.

By the 1960s, only a few traces of this theatrical decor remained, the overall style having disappeared. Its spirit nevertheless endures, as seen in the catwalk design for the Spring-Summer 2011 Haute Couture show, which clearly evoked the original decor and 18th-century mirrors of Coco Chanel’s apartment.

Photograph on the left by Roger Schall: fashion show at 31 rue Cambon in 1938

Photograph on the right by Olivier Saillant: Haute Couture show at the Pavillon Cambon Capucines in 2011