Matthieu Blazy continues to thrive as Chanel creative director. Appointed in December 2024, the French-Belgian designer has been installed at one of fashion’s most prestigious positions for exactly one year (having officially started in April 2025). The designer’s first official advertising campaign for Chanel is here for Spring 2026. Blazy enlisted Alec Soth for the occasion, opting to ditch the usual suspects. The American photographer ventured to Gabrielle Chanel’s Mediterranean Villa La Pausa, situated in the hills of Roquebrune-Cap-Martin on the French Riviera. Soth captured a Blazy-approved ensemble cast of models for the occasion, including Aditsa Berzenia, Awar Odhiang, Bhavitha Mandava, Cathy Simmons, Josephen Akuei, Latahlia Hickling, Loli Bahia, Marta Freccia, Noor Khan, Trinidad Castaño, Waleska Gorczevski, and Xiuli Jiang.

The Chanel Spring 2026 Campaign

Read below the reactions of theFashionSpot’s forum members:

“I’m done already with Blazy. Everything he does is so pedestrian,” called out Creative immediately.

“It’s a bit underwhelming, but I like the Awar Odhiang shot. I love the spirit of joy but that group shot is very catalogue,” shared Lola701.

“The group shot is so corny and verging on cringy,” commented FashionPower.

Helmutnotdead used the word “tragic” to describe the campaign.

“It’s all so tragic,” echoed forum member WAVES. “I was expecting (maybe I wasn’t) something better. The group shot is so pedestrian I can’t even…”

“When will designers stop hiring art photographers for the cred of hiring an art photographer? They truly suck at fashion. This is laughable,” an underwhelmed 90sfan exclaimed.

“After all the impact Awar created by closing the show and the worldwide attention it received, was it really necessary to run a campaign with multiple models? I’m confident that Awar alone, or at most Awar together with Loli and Bhavitha, would have been more than enough,” stated kitsune21.

See more from the Chanel Spring 2026 campaign and click here to join the conversation.