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On Tuesday 19 February, it was announced that Chanel creative director and fashion icon Karl Lagerfeld had passed away.
Having been at the helm of the luxury French fashion house for more than three decades, Lagerfeld oversaw the brand as it put on some of the most unforgettable catwalk shows the fashion industry has ever seen.
In 2010, Lagerfeld had his models walk among icebergs in a Winter Wonderland-inspired show.
A year later, the German fashion designer had an eight-tonne golden lion created by production designer Stefan Lubrina placed at the centre of Chanel's catwalk at Paris Fashion Week, perhaps to symbolise the label's sartorial majesty.
From a scale-model replica of the Eiffel Tower to a beach in Paris' Grand Palais, take a look at Chanel's most memorable runway settings under the leadership of Karl Lagerfeld: Show all 30 1 /30Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures On 5 March 2019, Karl Lagerfeld's last Chanel show was presented on the last day of Paris Fashion Week. Lagerfeld curated a Winter Wonderland-inspired display for his final collection, which he co-designed with newly appointed Chanel creative director Virginie Viard.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Chanel's signature perfume No 5 was the main feature of the French fashion house's autumn/winter haute couture show on 7 July 2009, leaving a scent of the sublime in the impressive hall of the Grand Palais, Paris.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Paying tribute to where the luxury fashion label began, Chanel's autumn/winter 2017/2018 haute couture show featured a scale-model of the Eiffel Tower in the middle of the catwalk. The Parisian landmark inspired the designs that Lagerfeld presented on the catwalk, with a range of similarly shaped dresses and coats.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures In May 2018, Chanel set sail by presenting a 148-metre ship as part of a catwalk show at the Grand Palais. It took a month to install the ship inside the historic site.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Chanel's SS18 in October 2017 show took a trip to the tropics. Models walked in the Grand Palais against a backdrop of waterfalls. 'Waterfalls are the healthiest thing in the world,' Lagerfeld said after the show.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures While snow was falling outside the Grand Palais, the setting of Chanel's spring/summer 2019 haute couture show transported its audience to sunny Italy. Models walked against a backdrop of an Italian villa, complete with a superbly primmed garden and luxurious pool.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures The Grand Palais was transformed into a beach for Chanel's spring/summer show in October 2018 during Paris Fashion Week. The set included a tidal machine, which made the water lap waves, and Chanel lifeguards sitting in a wooden beach hut.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Chanel's autumn/winter 2018 forest-inspired show from March 2018 was definitely one of its eeriest, complete with towering trees and a floor strewn with fallen leaves.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures What better way to blast off a fashion show than placing a rocket at the centre of the catwalk? Some might say that Chanel's autumn/winter 2017 fashion show in Paris was out of this world...
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Chanel's spring/summer 2016 environmentally conscious haute couture show was extremely serene, set in a wooden pavilion with a beautiful green lawn and water lily ponds. One of the dresses displayed at the show was made entirely from wild cotton, Lagerfeld said. 'This is high-fashion ecology,' he added. 'It must not look like some sloppy demonstration!'
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures In 2015 Chanel invited its audience to fly away, presenting a catwalk in the Grand Palais inspired by an airport terminal. In Lagerfeld's opinion, his vision was how an airport terminal 'should' look.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures In 2015, the French fashion label enlisted the help of stars including Kristen Stewart, Julianne Moore and Lara Stone to create an astounding casino-themed show in the Grand Palais. Card tables were placed in the centre of the room, while guests watched the show from the sides of the room.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures While some may opt to go to the supermarket in their comfiest clothes, in 2014 Lagerfeld showed that a trip to the vegetable aisle doesn't have to be an unfashionable affair. The juxtaposition between the luxurious clothing being worn by the models and the food produce on the shelves of the set made this catwalk one of Chanel's most memorable.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Chanel's show on 10 March at Paris Fashion Week was a luxurious affair, involving models Kendall Jenner and Cara Delevingne walking around a French brasserie as part of the catwalk.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Taking inspiration from the art world, Lagerfeld had custom-made artworks placed around the Chanel catwalk in the Grand Palais as part of the brand's show at Paris Fashion Week in October 2013. These artworks included a robot made from bottles of Chanel No 5 and a quilted sumo wrestler.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures The world was seemingly Chanel's oyster in March 2013, as Lagerfeld had a 50ft globe at the centre of the catwalk during the French labels show at Paris Fashion Week. Every one of Chanel's 310 international stores were marked on the globe with a double CC-logo-ed flag.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Chanel's haute couture spring/summer 2013 show at the Grand Palais in January 2013 bore strong elements of fantasy, having models dressed in angelic white and floral prints walking among a spectacular forest scene. Here, two models accompany Hudson Kroenig, Lagerfeld's godson, on the catwalk.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures The beneficial impact of renewable energy on the environment was highlighted by Chanel in 2012, when Lagerfeld had a series of wind turbines places on the runway of the spring/summer 2013 show at the Grand Palais.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures In March 2012 Lagerfeld transformed the set of his Chanel show at the Grand Palais into the 'Fortress of Solitude', having models walk amid magnificent crystalline sculptures.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Who doesn't wish they could walk down the airplane aisle like a catwalk model when jetting off on holiday? At the Chanel spring/summer 2012 haute couture show on 24 January 2012, guests at the Grand Palais were transfixed as the catwalk took place within the confines of a plane.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures In 2011, Chanel put on its extravagant 'Paris-Bombay' Métiers d'Art show. Lagerfeld took inspiration from India with his designs, decorating the tables that surrounded the catwalk with a grand feast.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures In 2011, Chanel's ready-to-wear spring/summer 2012 catwalk was made even more entrancing by the accompanying performance of singer Florence Welch. Welch sung while standing inside a seashell, with the rest of the set designed to look like the bottom of a sea bed.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Chanel's haute couture show at the Grand Palais on 5 July had a very dark feel, set in what looked like a dystopian Metropolis.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Chanel had a roaring presence at Paris Fashion Week in 2011, as models walked underneath the shadow of a gigantic gold lion. The set was designed by Stefan Lubrina, and the lion was reported to have weighed eight tonnes.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures The models walking the catwalk for Chanel on 9 March 2010 channelled their inner ice queens as they walked among replicas of icebergs in Paris. 'Nature has its surprises,' Lagerfeld said at the time.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Chanel's spring/summer 2010 show at Paris Fashion Week in 2009 was fairly surreal, featuring a custom-made barn and a performance by Lily Allen on the catwalk.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures In 2008 Lagerfeld recreated Chanel's building at number 31 on Rue Cambon in Paris, presenting the facade at the end of the catwalk. The building was the apartment in which Coco Chanel once lived, before becoming a flagship for the brand.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Chanel took a trip to the fairground in 2008, placing a high fashion carousel at the centre of the catwalk. Instead of horses on the merry-go-round, Lagerfeld featured signature quilted handbags, pearls and bows.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Sometimes a simple set design can be far more striking than an extravagant one, as displayed at the Chanel haute couture show in Paris on 6 July 2006.
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Chanel's most memorable runway settings - in pictures Chanel's spring/summer 2007 show, presented on 6 October 2006, was an undoubtable feast for the eyes. Featuring a grand spiral staircase, the French fashion house definitely took its ambitious set designs to new heights.
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Following the news of Lagerfeld's death, Chanel announced that his "right hand woman" Virginie Viard would be replacing him as creative director of the brand.
Viard has worked alongside Lagerfeld for more than three decades, first joining Chanel in 1987 as an intern.
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