Coco Chanel
The Marginal Creator
EDP 380, FALL, 1997
JESSICA WALTON

In his 1993 book, Creating Minds, Howard Gardner attempted to distinguish characteristics that were common to creative people. In doing so, he concluded that many factors were involved in the development of a creator. For instance, the relationship between the Individual, the Work, and Other People (i.e. family and colleagues) (Gardner 9) was elemental in predicting future successes. Likewise, part of his hypothesis focused around the fact that creators typically make their mark in one single genre. He divided the types of work that could be created into seven different areas: interpersonal, intrapersonal, visual/spatial, logical/mathematical, musical, verbal/linguistic, body kinesthetic (Gardner vii). Gardner's rubric for finding commonalties amongst creators, or those people who produce innovative, influential works in their particular domain, has become a highly regarded and widely used tool for identifying creative genius. Likewise, one key factors promoting creativity was the marginal status of the creator. Gardner briefly mentions the importance of the relationship between the creator and their society (Gardner 42). In my opinion, Gardner gives too little attention to the importance of one's marginal status. I intend to show, through the example of Coco Chanel, that marginality can have an imperative impact on the development of one's creativity. Therefore, I will fit Chanel into the prescribed rubric that Gardner outlined in his book, and show how her marginal status defined her as well as her work.

Part One:
The Personal History of Chanel

Chanel was born in 1883, illegitimately (Charles-Roux 9/3) to a father that would soon desert her, and a mother who would die by the time she reached the age of twelve (Charles-Roux 9). Once orphaned, she went to live in a convent (Charles-Roux 9). There she developed feelings of loneliness and mental anguish (Charles-Roux 9); themes which would carry with her through her adult life.
Perhaps it was the lack of a "classic" familial system (i.e. a married mother and father raising their children) that caused the young Chanel to desire nothing more in life than marriage and the love of a perpetually devoted husband (Charles-Roux 13). Unfortunately, (or from some perspectives, perhaps fortunately) Chanel would never marry nor would she have children (Charles-Roux 13). And according to some rumors, Chanel was unable to have children because of a botched abortion attempt in her youth (Madsen 27). This would be one of many examples of the rumors that plagued Chanel.
For such an ambitious woman, it might seem a tad surprising that Chanel would not get everything that she desired. Logically, the only area in Chanel's life where she did not get what she sought after was in her relationships with others (perhaps this was because relationships involved at least one other person, and for a control-freak like Coco, this proved difficult). As Madsen wrote: "She spent a lifetime breaking with people who knew those odds and ends of her story that did not coincide with the legend she wanted to create" (4). Chanel did have many relationships with men in her lifetime. These men made a powerful impact on her career, yet they never wanted Chanel to be anything more to them than a mistress (as opposed to wanting her to become a wife) (Charles-Roux 9/10). Coco had a penchant for men in high places: she dated a Russian Duke, an English Duke, an aristocrat, Etienne Balsan (Charles-Roux 10/11). These men were able to introduce Chanel to a thing that she had not been introduced to during her impoverished childhood: luxury. The interesting fabrics that were commonplace in their lives would one day become commonplace in her haute couture collections.
During her lifetime, Chanel was know as more than a mistress and a designer. In fact, she was something of a late bloomer. She attempted to be an actress, but was unable to carry a tune, and therefore was unable to become employed (Charles-Roux 49). She also danced, sold hosiery, rode horses, and dispensed mineral water (Charles-Roux 10/32/45). It was only later in her life that Coco would fully develop her gift for fashion. One thing did remain constant for Chanel--her uniqueness. She was simply unforgettable. As her biographer, Charles-Roux wrote:
". . .[upon her arrival in Paris in 1909] she already dressed according to her own taste--thatis like no one else--and possed of that vibrantinner quality which would make her unforgettableto everyone she met." 10
Chanel was able to retain more independence and freedom than many women in her time period (Charles-Roux 42), and as I will later explain, I feel that this was in large part due to her rather marginal status.

Part Two:
The Professional History of Chanel

Coco Chanel was quite simply an incredible business woman. She opened her first store in 1913 with the backing of a friend; and she left a lover in order to do so (Charles-Roux 11). This first store was not, by any means handed to Chanel. She worked quite hard in order to make it a success. For example, it was reported that on days before a major show, she would be so obsessed with work that she would "forget" to eat and go through the entire day having only a glass of water (Charles-Roux 13). In a similar vein, I think that it says quite a bit about Chanel that she was able to turn a boutique that had employed two teenage girls who did not know how to sell into one of the most profitable fashion houses of all time (Charles-Roux 108).
Chanel had a fine business sense. She located her second store in an area that was easily accessible to the wealthy people that she would need as customers (Charles-Roux 125). (Haute couture is the most expensive type of fashion that one can purchase.) Part of Chanel's success could also be attributed to her staunch control over her company, as she reportedly said to one of her assistants: "I'm here to make a fortune. Henceforth, nobody spends a centime without my permission" (Madsen 57). And finally, and most importantly, Chanel's success was mostly due to her ability to create, "at all cost, she had to set herself apart from everyone else in her position" (Charles-Roux 69).
Chanel was an innovator in the world of fashion. "Chanel wanted to achieve what no one else had dared to do with such candor. . ." (Charles-Roux 133). The following were the staples of modern day fashion which she introduced to the world:

€the bobbed hair style
€the elimination of the corset from women's fashion
€haute couture skiing accessories
€the unisex style of dressing
€sunbathing
€the use of knit jersey
€the women's bathing suit
€sports fashion
(Charles-Roux). She also became a Hollywood fashion designer
Attendance was down in the theaters, so in an effort to attract women theater-goers, he asked her to design costumes that would appeal to women (Charles-Roux 255).
Chanel's innovations did not end merely with fabric. She enlarged what would be expected of designers by inventing her own, designer fragrance in 1920. In other words, prior to Chanel, chemist, and other such people were responsible for the introduction of perfumes. Yet, Chanel, along with her ". . .acute sense of smell" (Madsen 132), set out to change all of this. With the help of Ernest Beaux, a chemist, she combined over one hundred and twenty eight (128) scents to design Chanel Number Five (Charles-Roux 169). Coco was the first to incorporate the use of floral scents (Madsen 132).
Yet, despite all of her successes, and her never-before-thought-of innovations and introductions into the fashion realm, Chanel chose to retire in 1939.
Fifteen years after retiring, a seventy year old Chanel made a comeback (Charles-Roux 320). In this same year (1954), Coco designed one of her most signature items: the Chanel suit. This classic suit with its short skirt and button down jacket (Jackie O wore it the day her husband was shot in Dallas, Texas) has never gone out of style (Charles-Roux 3).
Certainly, it can be said that Chanel did an incredible amount for the development of fashion. By maintaining her incredible business sense, control over her business and her most precious asset--her uniqueness--Chanel created what modern fashion is.



Part Three:
The Marginality Factor

Coco Chanel was able to re-create fashion. Why? According to Gardner, it was most likely due to the relationship between herself, her work and the people in her life. And for the most part, the key relationship was between Chanel and her work--for this was the most important thing to this ambitious woman. Her drive for perfection and control, in my opinion were an attempt to control what she felt she could not control--her relationships with other people. She did not want to be abandoned by them, and therefore did not want to become dependent on them should they ever leave (as her parents had). But these relationships do not explain why Chanel was so creative. In contrast, they explain why she was such a hard worker.
I feel that Chanel's status as a marginal member of society explains her creativity. From birth she was different from everyone else--she was illegitimate. When someone is considered different, it would be logical to assume that they would come to see things differently. And it almost seems as though Chanel attempted to lead her life in a very non-conventional way: she did not marry, she was not a mother (assuming that were she truly infertile, she could have adopted a child), she made a comeback at the age of seventy, she worked a variety of jobs before "settling" on fashion. Had she desired, I see no reason why she could not have simply done like most women in her time and become a traditional housewife. Yet she chose not to. She dared to be different. Perhaps being marginal gave Chanel the identity she felt she lacked having never been associated with, or belonging to a family. Who was Chanel? She was different. She was unique. She was unforgettable. If people associated her with being these things, perhaps they would "forget" her unconventional upbringing. After all, Chanel could not control what had happened to her as a young child, but she could control what happened to her as an adult. And she wanted to be appreciated, she wanted to be special--being unconventional gave her the ability to fill this desire. And the more creative, the more outlandish that Chanel was, the more creative she was. In a similar vein, Chanel did not have the childhood of most others. She had been raised unconventionally. This most certainly gave her a different perspective on things. Perhaps she was "creative" because she did not know how to be "traditional." Maybe what seemed normal to Chanel, what felt natural for her, was simply different from what was normal for others.
In any case, I feel that Chanel's marginal status was the main catalyst for her success as a fashion designer. Gardner overlooked the degree of importance that should be attributed to a creator's marginality. For in the end, to create is to do something original, what has never been done before. And to do something unique should mean to be unique. And to be unique and creative means to be marginal.


Bibliography

Charles-Roux, Edmonde. Chanel and Her World. The Vendome Press: London. 1979.

Gardner, Howard. Creating Minds. Basic Books: New York.
1993.

Madsen, Axel. Chanel: A Woman of Her Own. Henry Holt and Co.: New York. 1990.