What does the mind conjure up when a garment is not seen but instead described in words?

Imagining Chanel is an exploration into how fashion is experienced through language. It explores the role of the viewers imagination in the creation of fashion to highlight that fashion is something that predominantly exists in our minds. Sociologist, Yaniya Kawamura says; 'Fashion does provide extra added values to clothing, but the additional elements exist only in peoples imaginations and beliefs. Fashion is not visual clothing but is the invisible elements included in clothing.' Imagining Chanel uses the descriptions of garments from the 1920s- 1960s Chanel archive at the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Powerhouse Museum as a tool to draw attention to the role the imagination plays within fashion and that fashion is not something that exists as dress only. The performance mimics the Chanel Salon Fashion Shows from the 1920s to explore a range of physical descriptions from the collection. The audience took part in the fashion spectacle to design their own clothing through the device of their imagination.

What does the mind conjure when a garment is not seen, but described in words?

Imagining Chanel explores how fashion can be experienced through language and imagination rather than through the visual presence of clothing. The project draws on written descriptions of garments from the 1920s–1960s Chanel archives held at the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Powerhouse Museum.

Referencing the format of Chanel salon fashion shows of the 1920s, garments are described aloud rather than shown. Through listening and imagining, the audience visualises and designs the clothing in their minds, revealing fashion as something that exists not only in garments, but also in imagination.