Social Media Accuses Chanel of Animal Cruelty
The Parisian house’s SS22 Couture runway show featured a live horse.
Runway shows are often extravagant displays of fashion’s finest designs, and while Chanel attempted to follow in that tradition for its Spring/Summer 2022 Couture collection, many are calling out the fashion house for using a live animal to do so.
Chanel opened its SS22 show with Charlotte Casiraghi, the grandaughter of classic American beauty Grace Kelly, riding a horse. The Chanel ambassador, who is also a professional equestrian, wore a quintessential horseback riding outfit, accented with a shimmering black tweed jacket from the line. Some thought the show’s opening was an artistic choice, unifying the latest mélange of garments with the French label’s Couture show last spring, as it ended with a bride on horseback. However, social media was quick to call attention to the welfare of the animal that was used as a model.
One Instagram user commented on Chanel’s page, “So tacky and unnecessary to use animals in parades!” Another said, “How unnecessary is it to have a horse walk a catwalk? Just for the attendees’ entertainment? #animalabuse.”
In addition to accusations of animal abuse, many criticized the heavy, dark eye makeup on the models, saying it resembled a black eye.
