A tête-à-tête with Karl Lagerfeld? That's not even likely to happen in Hyères. Neither will you get a career as a fashion designer on a silver platter; not to mention one as an international shooting star photographer after receiving an award. So what's the secret behind Villa Noailles, the very French Festival of Fashion and Photography? Why has the festival in southern France existed for 30 years now? "It wasn't that easy to organize the festival every year," founder Jean-Pierre Blanc, who was notably moved to tears, stated clearly at the press conference held at the opening of the festival. In 2015, and its 30th year, his dreams seem to have come true. The House of Chanel represented by Creative Studio Director Virginie Viard, Image Director Eric Pfrunder and Karl Lagerfeld has brought the event in 2015 worldwide attention and stood side by side with equally famous jury colleagues including Caroline von Monacco or Sebastien Tellier (see GoSee article) next to Jean-Pierre Blanc.
From the 23rd through the 27th of April, the star-studded 30th Festival International de Mode et de Photographie took place at the Villa Noailles, in southern France's city of Hyères. Each year, the festival awards young fashion designers and photographers and gives the winners several prizes with the support of its partners. Besides Karl Lagerfeld as the Art Director, the festival gladly welcomed Virginie Viard, Directrice des Studio de Création at CHANEL, as the President of the fashion jury. At her side, you'll find the President of the photography jury, Eric Pfrunder, who is Directeur de l’Image at CHANEL.
Now back to the secret – and getting to the bottom of it. At GoSee, we have been wondering and have our own speculations. Is it the charm of southern France, which inevitably leads to a more relaxed atmosphere? Or is it that Paris, with all its closely abided by conventions seems so far away? Is Hyères so well hidden that the pressure of not having enough time cannot find it? Or does the optimism of the young designers and photographers automatically infect the festivals visitors? Whatever it is: Hyères is just like a perfect collection – the magical ingredients of the recipe are what determine the enchanting flavor: a legendary location, a professional team, motivated young talents, curious visitors... year after year, the event gives us the opportunity to get inspired. And even though France is very aware of how important its fashion industry is – in 2015, Ministre de la Culture Mme Fleur Pellerin announced that her ministry would secure the festival financially for the next three years – money is definitely not the secret of Villa Noailles; au contraire, there is a mysterious spirit of solidarity in the air which its like-minded visitors can feel. We have several pictures and original statements for you.
