French fashion house Chanel brought glamour back to Communist-ruled Cuba on Tuesday in a runway show on one of Havana's main boulevards, featuring glittering gowns, tulle cocktail dresses and models in Panama hats smoking cigars.
Chanel is the first major fashion house to hold a runway show in Cuba, highlighting both warming relations with the West and new inequalities on the island.
Former Cold War foes the United States and Cuba formally agreed to restore diplomatic relations last July.
Celebrities, including actress Tilda Swinton and supermodel Gisele Bundchen, jetted into the Caribbean island for the show that evoked the elegance of pre-revolutionary Cuba, arriving at the venue in vintage convertibles.
The Cuban contingent included former President Fidel Castro's grandson Tony, an aspiring model, which raised some eyebrows, given the leader's railings against capitalism.
Karl Lagerfeld, who has been at Chanel's creative helm since 1983, has said his latest inter-seasonal Cruise collection was inspired by the "cultural richness and opening up of Cuba."
Cuban motifs in the new Cruise line were exemplified in a fabric depicting turquoise and pink vintage cars used for leisurewear such as jackets, a bathrobe and skirts.
Sequined black berets also recalled the non-glitzy one sported by late revolutionary hero Ernesto "Che" Guevara, a national hero in Cuba.
By showcasing its Cruise collection in Cuba, Chanel has said it was harking back to the roots of the line, originally designed for wealthy Americans holidaying on yachts and cruises in the Caribbean to escape the winter grey.
US cruises to Cuba were forbidden during the country's standoff with the United States. On Monday, the first US cruise ship to sail to the island since Castro's 1959 revolution docked in the capital.
REUTERS