Flying the flag of Celine Homme, a young chevalier gallops on his black stallion toward the Château de Chambord, followed by a posse of fellow knights on white chargers. On the fantastical turreted rooftops stands a lone blond princeling, wrapped melancholically in a black cloak and a high-necked white frilled-neck Renaissance blouse. And so begins the dramatic unfolding of Hedi Slimane’s “Teen Knight Poem,” his “Nouveau Romantique” rallying call to the teen spirit of 2021.

Youth might leap to the conclusion that the scenery is some kind of CGI-created dream castle—but not at all. The Château de Chambord is a hunting lodge in the Loire valley built by the “Chevalier King” Francois I in the 16th century, a monument wreathed in French Renaissance history, chosen as a narrative background for a collection balanced between a flight of medievalist escapism and Slimane’s laser-keen contemporary focus on products to get contemporary guys buying.

Slimane “fell in love with” the Château de Chambord because of its spectacular black-and-white architecture. We know about the authentically real, extravagantly haute setting because of the unusually explanatory press notes he sent out this season. There’s even a credit for the horse Goya, the “17-year-old Black Andalou stallion,” ridden by “Raoul, son and nephew of friends of Hedi.” And a footnote detailing how Slimane sent the sound of a “French military drum march” as a keynote to The Loom, his British musician friends Jack and George Barnett, to inset as the beat of this season’s house-style mesmerically looping Celine soundtrack.

The trope—young boys bravely clad in various references to armor—had an elation about it. A conscious elevation of intent too. Whereas last season, Slimane had gone down to e-boy teen-bedroom level, now he was up to high culture—inspired by portraits of the court of Francois I and placing an explicit emphasis on extreme French luxury. Broad-shouldered leather gilets and oversized knits sounded a kind of simultaneous clarion call to ’80s pop culture and medieval battle gear and tabard-like silhouettes, also a neat way of circling back to Slimane-invented skinny-legged territory. Nouveau romantic dangly earrings, studded knit helmet-beanies, and metal-tipped Chelsea boots piled on the accessory inventory—some random yeti ski boots too.

Luxury, though: When all’s said and done, Celine is a luxury French house, and—never mind the spinning out of accessible hoodies and unmissable logos (which there were also aplenty)—that reputation has to be upheld too. Slimane’s notes held his answer to that. The embellishments in stones, crystal, and chain mail glinting among this collection were “realized in Parisian couture and embroidery ateliers”; the final look took 23 embroiderers more than 1,300 hours of work. Not much difference there from the labor lavished on the ceremonial garb in the 16th century, when you think about it. Are there neo-princes out there in the world today who will go for that? Probably.

In other news, Rick Owens Fall 2021 Men's. “I’m always conscious of my own aggression. And the older that I get, I feel like I should have reached a level of serenity that I just haven’t; I get impatient, I get itchy, I snap at people sometimes… Aggression is something that I’m fascinated with because I’m constantly conscious of wrestling with it, personally. And I think that that’s true of every man.”

"There’s even a credit for the horse Goya, the “17-year-old Black Andalou stallion,” ridden by “Raoul, son and nephew of friends of Hedi.''

New face, same old Celine: creative director and photographer Hedi Slimane captures his new women’s collection as modeled by newcomer Anna Pepper for the house’s Spring 2021 campaign.

The campaign introduces a new and exclusive face for the brand, Anna Pepper. She also opened the house’s Spring 2021 show, which was her first, in Monaco in October. She and Slimane took time out from the show preparations to capture the collection at the petite country’s seashore, before all the windswept glory of the Mediterranean.

While it’s exciting to see a new face, Ms. Pepper doesn’t give us much to go off of personality-wise. She exudes that Billie Eilish, dead-inside-but-still-cooler-than-you vibe. Slimane’s photography is mostly concerned with how he wants to see his subjects, rather than what they themselves have to offer. While the approach makes for an image that feels exclusively visual and surface-level, it is not necessarily a bad thing, and actually plays a large part in the strength and consistency of the brand’s image and marketing.

With its chic, summery styling and sense of hazy nostalgia, the campaign fits nicely into Slimane’s oeuvre.  

Review of Celine Women’s Spring 2021 Ad Campaign by Hedi Slimane.

Thomas Brodie-Sangster broods in black and white in a Spring 2021 campaign for Celine. Creative director Hedi Slimane photographs the actor in his signature style.

Fresh off the success of his supporting role in The Queen’s Gambit, Brodie-Sangster poses for Slimane’s “Portrait of an Actor.” Capturing him in moody monochrome and making dramatic use of light and shadow, Slimane finds a nice place for the boyish heartthrob among his trademark rock-and-roll nostalgia fantasy. Brodie-Sangster poses in slim-cut suits and leather jackets, or, sometimes, no shirt at all, a folky fedora crowning his elfin features.

Though the short film’s minimalist soundtrack evokes a feeling of thoughtful melancholy and resolved tension, nothing actually happens in it. This is of course emblematic of all Slimane’s work for the house: it is consistent and visually evocative, but offers very little in the way of concept or ideas. This portrait tells us very little about this actor other than that he thinks about stuff and Hedi Slimane thinks he’s hot. But Slimane knows what he’s doing with respect to photography and the consistency of his branding, and the art direction is strong enough that the campaign can make its impact from its visuals alone.

In other news, Versace Spring 2021 ad campaign. Review of Versace Spring 2021 Ad Campaign by Donatella Versace and Creative Director Ferdinando Verderi with Photographers Mert Alas & Marcus Piggott.

Review of Celine Homme ‘Portrait of an Actor’ Spring 2021 Ad Campaign by Hedi Slimane with Thomas Brodie-Sangster.

CELINE 'PORTRAIT OF AN ACTOR' SPRING 2021 AD CAMPAIGN WITH THOMAS BRODIE-SANGSTER

“I have nostalgia for things I have probably never known. There is no irony here.” Okay. Hedi Slimane did not speak these terms, direct quoting not being his style, but in a book of posters released at the exhibition, he let the artist David Kramer say them for him. Slimane (born 1968) and Kramer (born 1963) are soul mates, destined to be pissed forever that they were born too late to taste the early '70s rock-and-roll hedonism. They didn't get to swagger high-waist flares and dandified fitted suits from Savile Row; go backstage around the Stones when they headed hippie in '67; donate Panamas seriously and grow their hair long when all that was fucking fresh and cool.

A recurring theme in this season's menswear collections has been the return of boyhood dreams. The link made by Slimane with the work of Kramer revealingly tied it all together into the same thing. In the repertoire of high-hoicked, butt-clinching boot-cut pants and jeans, tiny bomber jackets, and all the minutely noticed retail throwbacks to the rock-aristocracy trend that he marched out on the Celine runway, he laid it all out for a new generation. 

And the way he displayed it, Slimane made no compromises. In this case, a boy in a silver glitter three-piece suit, transported on a rolling throne of a thing, surmounted by disco lights, there was no variation on his long-established method of plunging his audience into darkness, the grand installation at the start.

Slimane's claim to market supremacy is fashion theme, rinsed and systematized as an affordable commodity, in this case aviators, pointy woven-leather Chelsea boots, and skinny ties. This system, his way or the highway, can seem emotionless. For his casting, it would also undoubtedly catch criticism; on what seemed to be an otherwise all-Caucasian runway, there were only three black models. In the '70s, the music scene never looked like that and today it definitely doesn't. The lack of diversity may be a safeguard for this Celine collection to talk as broadly as it could through the generation of today.

The collection checked several boxes, recording the proto-hippy moment when white kids started traveling, picking up peasant baskets and hanging out in North Africa. This season, the splendid gold-embroidered burnoose cape chimed in with many other collections at the finale. There is definitely resonance to taking up this age for a young generation that is certainly not born in happy times; Slimane's right about that. But the usual narrowness of his emphasis somehow skipped the multicultural way children see the world today.

In other news, David Koma Spring 2021 Ready-to-Wear: “Not being able to invite any guests,” he said, due to current COVID-19 rulings. “I would have loved to have staged a show there and invited 50 people to stay for dinner after,” he mused. “Maybe next time.”

“I have nostalgia for things I have probably never known. There is no irony here.” Okay.

CELINE MEN SPRING-SUMMER 2020 FASHION SHOW

Dutch model Rianne Van Rompaey is shot by Hedi Slimane in his Resort 2021 range for Celine's newest campaign. 

Van Rompaey is captured in black and white in the traditional Hedi Slimane style, alternating between studio portraiture and outdoor shots along the coast of Saint-Tropez. Van Rompaey's long and tattered hair blows softly in the wind, her freckles accentuating her neoclassical elegance, an ethereal yet earthy springtime beauty. 

One of the pictures stands out from the rest: Van Rompaey holds an apple, pulls a bite out of it and looks into the camera deeply. Of course, the picture looks reminiscent of Eve and the prohibited fruit. Slimane seems to be referring to concepts of femininity, self-knowledge, and modesty through this imagery. 

But all of this imaginative intrigue is absent from the rest of the campaign, and so it might be too much of a stretch to pull more creative sense out of it. Instead, the campaign is another solid example of the consistency and singularity of vision with which Slimane creates the image of the brand.

In other news, Y’S Spring 2021 Ready-to-Wear. It was indeed true to brand, and got straight to the point. Using natural fabrics such as Cupro, rayon and cotton, the design team succeeded in walking that very fine line between understated and interesting.

Review of Celine Resort 2021 Ad Campaign by Hedi Slimane with Rianne Van Rompaey

Since the summer of 2020, when he showed his Dancing Boy men’s collection—an ode to e-boys—on a Formula One track in the South of France, Hedi Slimane has switched his approach to documentary mode. The second half of what he called (in an email) a “portrait of a generation”—this one for girls—was also filmed in a sports venue, the Stade Louis II in Monaco. “With this collection Hedi wants to show, through the youth [and] optimism, the hope [in] this uncertain time.”

Styling and restyling the bourgeois codes of what Celine used to stand for is how he started at this house. Now, interrupting them with how they might be rehandled by French Gen Z on the street—or at home—is the name of his game.

She’s “always the Parisian but with a new energy—she listens to rap/hip-hop music”—like the track by Princess Nokia, which looped hypnotically as the models strode the circuit, their Celine-logo baseball caps and bucket hats pulled down, hands thrust in the pockets of their jeans, shorts, and ’80s style blousons.

The timeless bits of luxury fashion—like the tailored blazer, the glamorous sequined dress, and the ladylike Sulky bag—are still centrally represented: Slimane isn’t about to give up on plying that wardrobe. The difference is his sharp-eyed assessment of the way that the granddaughters of Celine’s earlier customers will likely give the posh stuff a complete dressing down. Gone are the old tropes of proper, high-heel polish. This generation will only wear flats—anything from sneakers to fluffy bedroom slides to hiking boots and Wellington boots—put crop tops under blazers, throw on nylon jackets over loose-fitting sparkly dresses and track pants under jackets.

It’s a rewritten language of style that Slimane aims to be read by youth globally. The parting shot of the film soared up through the roof of the Monegasque stadium, switched to a darkened sky, and culminated with a view of the earth seen from space. What did it signify? That our planet is beautiful and we’re still lucky to be alive on it—maybe something like that. For the anxious times that all kids are living through, that seemed to be Slimane’s small gesture of hope.

It’s a rewritten language of style that Slimane aims to be read by youth globally.

CELINE‘s luxurious in-house haute parfumerie has debuted the Coffret Miniature set, delivering nine 10ml bottles of different fragrances in a collector’s piece-like box.

Said to be “designed like an invitation to the haute parfumerie collection,” the selection comprises identical reproductions of 100ml and 200ml bottles inspired by the late 17th-century classicism and the Art Deco periods, which gives the set a very luxurious and regal feeling.

It does so by embossing the labels with 17th-century moldings and by adding black faceted caps to the tops of sharp-fluted glass bottles that allow the amber and gold tones of each fragrance to shine and dazzle when the box is opened. Inside you’ll find nine fragrances developed by Hedi Slimane that reference his olfactory journal, based on memories and stories that are sentimental to him.

It’s a vast storybook of scents. “Parade”, “Saint-Germain-des-Prés,” “Cologne Française,” “Dans Paris,” “La Peau Nue,” “Eau de Californie,” “Reptile,” “Black Tie” and “Nightclubbin’” are completely unique to themselves, each telling a different tale or journey through scent. Rounding out the luxurious air is the box itself, which is made using Grain de Poudr paper and a knotted black grosgrain bow.

Take a look at the CELINE Haute Parfumerie Coffret Miniature Set below. It is available exclusively at the label’s Harbour City and Landmark stores in Hong Kong, and is priced at $2,750 HKD (approx. $355 USD).

Taking you from “Dans Paris” to “Eau de Californie” and “Nightclubbin’.”

CELINE HAUTE PARFUMERIE'S COFFRET MINIATURE SET EXPLORES HEDI SLIMANE'S OLFACTORY JOURNAL

Celine Homme Spring/Summer 2021 is a mixture of the diverse inspirations of Hedi Slimane, from the classical western film Johnny Guitar to TikTok. Its name, "The Dancing Kid," indicates the space between, drawing influence for its vibrant clothes from the youthful app, without departing entirely from the rocker codes of Slimane. 

Although Fall/Winter 2020 delivered sophisticated tailoring with a touch of masculine subversion, SS21 delves completely into playfully bold patterns, prints and appliqués. The sparkling LED-studded jackets, oversized flannel shirts and leopard-patterned pants seem to be tailor-made for TikTok stars — indeed, the luxury house has already posted TikTok stars' Instagram Stories like @lilhuddy and @noeneubanks — already a Celine muse — styling the next season looks on their native platform. 

Soundtracked by Tiagz's TikTok smash "They Call Me Tiago" — edited exclusively for the 12-minute presentation by Celine Homme — "The Dancing Kid" extracts inspiration from Slimane's reaction to months of isolation, imagining a wardrobe appropriate for circumstance-stifled young creatives. The brand specifically cites "e-boys and current skate culture" as central to "The Dancing Kid" as both a movie and a collection, as well as the "reclaiming the night" theme. 

Such conceits are mirrored in the collared shirts worn under the sweaters of Celine, the hanging lock-laden necklaces and the ripped or "lacerated" Slimane's signature skinny jeans, seen stacked on top of the latest Z Trainers of Celine Homme. Tie-dyed layering pieces and knit beanies give the tiger stripe ponchos texture and sleeveless leather jackets that are reminiscent of the nightlife staples of yesteryear, while plaid tops, trendy eyewear and branded bags are a perfect fit for consumers of genre-fluid Gen Z. 

See "THE DANCING KID" in detail below and on the website of Celine.

In other news, Rick Owens isn't into doing anything halfway. The Paris-based California-born designer is known for some of the most controversial and envelope-pushing concepts in the fashion industry, with runway shows to suit. Yet Spring/Summer 2021 "PHLEGETHON" is another matter. The line, closely lensed by Owens himself, is a selection of repurposed pieces from the previous collections of Owens, accompanied by new designs and concepts. 

Channels E-Boys and Skaters in Confinement.

Photographed in St. Tropez on the southern coast of France by artistic director Hedi Slimane, the campaign highlights the Celine house's latest Plein Soleil collection. The young model offers an effortlessly cool energy coupled with a natural beauty that fits perfectly with the last days of summer feeling. Slimane captures her in his black-and-white signature style, seeking a sense of soft harmony between his subject and the surrounding wildflowers and trees. 

Though understated and softly stunning, the campaign forms a significant moment for Celine. Recently, Hedi Slimane faced criticism and accusations of racism, and his personal instagram account – which consists of his creative work and does not feature a single non-white person – was pointed out as clear evidence. Celine's account is faring a little better. Especially in the reign of the Black Lives Matter movement, concerns were raised about whether there was no deep tension between what Celine values as a brand, and who its creative director is as an individual and artist. 

This campaign is only a beginning to rectifying those issues, but it is a beautiful one. The presence of black models and other people of color should be a norm, not something that needs to be celebrated, so it's awesome to see these Mombot images so naturally and beautifully integrated into Celine's existing aesthetics. She's a young model and a fresh face – this is her first big campaign, and it appears to be one of her best ever ads – and Celine has helped her make a beautiful first impression. We are superexcited to see where her career is heading, and hoping to see more progress from Celine.

In other news, Rick Owens isn't into doing anything halfway. The Paris-based California-born designer is known for some of the most controversial and envelope-pushing concepts in the fashion industry, with runway shows to suit. Yet Spring/Summer 2021 "PHLEGETHON" is another matter. The line, closely lensed by Owens himself, is a selection of repurposed pieces from the previous collections of Owens, accompanied by new designs and concepts.

Essoye Mombot stars in a new campaign from Celine.

CELINE FALL 2020 AD CAMPAIGN WITH ESSOYE MOMBOT

Celine has collaborated with the foundation for a limited-edition series of necklaces that recalls the French sculpture César Baldaccini. 

Baldaccini has been at the forefront of the Nouveau Réalisme movement and is known for his art of compression, frequently turning scrap metal from vehicles or ordinary garbage into geometric sculptures. In 1959, the artist began exploring his art of Directed Compressions when he first saw how a heavyweight hydraulic crushing machine worked. 

Hedi Slimane at Celine has gained inspiration from the artist by producing two fine jewelry pieces for the French house — one necklace made of sterling silver and leather, and the other of gold vermeil and leather. There are only 100 of each necklace, and all are numbered and packed individually in special pinewood cases. 

The collaboration is organic, as Baldaccini used to make jewelry too. The artist would gather fragments, heirlooms, and antiques from his family and would remold them into new totemic necklaces — which these new Celine necklaces so clearly relate to. All necklaces are rectangular, and have compact metal carvings all over them. 

Take a look at the necklaces of the Celine César Compression Project. Both are now available to buy at select Celine boutiques. The sterling silver piece is retailing at $4,100 USD while the gold vermeil piece is at $5,400. 

César Baldaccini was once commissioned to paint a McLaren F1 GTR in 1995, which took part in Le Mans' famous 24 Hours. The Chassis GTR5 car is still in the livery that César created, and represents the only 'Art Car' based on the iconic Mclaren. 

Examples of César Baldaccini's work can be seen at the Musée d'art moderne de la Ville de Paris (Facel Véga) and in the permanent collection of the Centre national d'art et de culture Georges-Pompidou (Bas relief, Tortue, le Diable). Baldaccini also designed his own grave at the Montparnasse Cemetery, on the esplanade de La Défense (Le Pouce), in Marseille on Hamburg Avenue between the MAC and the Bonneveine Centre (Le Pouce Géant). One of Baldaccini's most iconic pieces, Conserve expansion - Martial Raysse (1970-1972), is at the Museo Cantonale d'Arte in Lugano. In the early 1990s the Frenchman Flying was mounted in Hong Kong.

Designer Rick Owens has been referencing César Baldaccini in his interviews mentioning that he's been inspired by his work while creating his own earlier collections.

Made from sterling silver or gold vermeil.

CELINE X CÉSAR BALDACCINI: THE LIMITED-EDITION COMPRESSION PROJECT NECKLACES

On 22 May, the digital catwalk show was live-streamed via an IGTV video, as Hanifa's founder Anifa Mvuemba showcased the looks of her ready-to-wear Pink Label Congo clothing line in the form of 3D renders draped on "ghost" models. 

While many would assume that the virtual catwalk was a result of the current Covid-19 quarantine conditions, Mvuemba said that during the sampling process of the brand she has been using virtual figures in her work for quite a while as mockups. 

"I wanted all of this to be part of our marketing campaign," she explained. 

"When the Covid-19 stay home orders unexpectedly occurred I was already working on these creations and saw it a chance to innovate and inspire given the constraints." 

"During those times, the 3D designs kept me sane and intrigued," the designer added. 

While Mvuemba did not disclose the exact method of development, she compares the framework of working with a 3D model to work with a human model. 

"I'm always wilful about the model's shapes and curves," she said. "Same as our garments, our 3D models are inspired by women because we are designing for women." 

Mvuemba also mentioned that she was initially afraid to go through her virtual fashion show in the light of the pandemic. 

"News came out about how bad things were and I started to feel very depressed about how everything is going on," she said. 

"I began to feel like maybe making and posting a new collection online would be disrespectful when people were facing very challenging realities." 

Despite her doubts, Mvuemba agreed to go ahead with the virtual display – in which more than 10,000 spectators tuned in – to make her work more open by giving everyone "a front-row seat" 

"We understand that some people may never experience a week of fashion or a showcase of Hanifa, so we wanted to make a show for our audience on a daily basis," she said. "It was then that Instagram was the obvious alternative." 

Soon after the show, Twitter and other social media platforms shared clips of the virtual garments, so they went viral, hailed as "groundbreaking." 

Mvuemb's capsule collection was inspired by her hometown in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and more specifically the "majestic women" who live there. 

She incorporated the country's elements into the detailing, stitching, and color of the garments. 

"The red symbolizes suffering, the blue symbolizes peace, and the yellow stands for hope, both Congo flag colors," she said. 

The ribbed Kinshasa Backless Mini Dress – named after the capital of the country – features a tritone palette taken from the Congolese flag, designed to "mirror the strength of the Congolese people's past." 

"The A-Line silhouette personifies releasing past pain and our backless design invites future peace and hope," the product description reads. "The exaggerated sleeves lie for an added layer of tension over your fingertips." 

Other important pieces included a wide-leg denim jumpsuit, a white stretch-satin skirt designed to highlight "the strength in the hips of a woman," and the floor-length silk Mái gown printed with a Congo River image closed the show.

"I expect women to gage meaning from every collection," Mvuemba said. "Hanifa is about more than just clothing. We are creating women who aspire to be limitless." 

"When each piece was created, I have been reminded of the stories my mom told me about the women she knew back in Congo," she said. "Women who suffered a great loss but still, gathered every ounce of strength to show up every day." 

"My hope is that these garments are going to inspire all women to stand tall in their power and use their history, beautiful or painful, like the Democratic Republic of Congo, to reshape their future." 

Mvuemba often refers to her research on the colonial inequalities in Central Africa, and to raise the consciousness of the corruption, bribery and forced labor of illicit coltan mining in the DRC – a mineral used as a condenser in electronics such as mobile phones and laptops. 

She hopes that her job will be "part of the solution".

In collaboration with Responsible Sourcing Network, Hanifa released their Collette t-shirt, which will see 20 percent of the proceeds donated to organizations that combat illicit coltan mining. 

Coronavirus has affected many fashion brands, unable to host any physical shows in which to showcase their collections. Big fashion houses like Celine, Courreges, Mugler, Rick Owens are among those.

Invisible models wore 3D-rendered garments in a virtual display that has been kept on Instagram Live by Congolese company Hanifa to showcase their new fashion line. 

HANIFA'S 3D COLLECTION GOES LIVE ON INSTAGRAM

The Maison Margiela Transitory Concept Store

A new Maison Margiela concept store has appeared in Lower Manhattan. It is not only a regular store, of course, but an ever-changing one that will eventually evolve into a permanent space. The store, though scheduled to run through July 2020, is temporarily closed like many others due to Corona virus, exists as the Maison Margiela Transitory Concept Store, with five art exhibitions curated by former creative director of Barneys (RIP) Dennis Freedman. Jessi Reaves's practical sculptures - that shoppers could sit on while trying out a pair of classic Tabi boots from the label - as well as Tabor Robak's video installation. The second fixture invites you to sit down on one of Rob Pruitt's silver chairs, which are covered with duct tape. Here you can find Wurtz's "Pan Paintings," or wall sculptures made of roasting pans and those aluminum food containers that you see at every holiday party and BBQ. Each cycle promises to expand the label 's commitment to art, or at least tempt your credit card whenever you put your foot in the store.

The Mexican artist Eduardo Terrazas has gained notoriety as one of the visual elements designers for the Mexico City 1968 Olympic Games. He graduated from architecture, and soon began experimenting with traditional Mexican folk art, namely the Huichol people's techniques arranging yarn on wax-covered boards to create brightly colored designs. His work was first recognised at 1969's Biennale at the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, and more than half a century later he returned to Paris, collaborating with Christian Dior on the new Lady Dior Art bag series. Terrazas' bag features his signature geometric designs made in brightly colored calfskin, or embellished with tiny woodwork. Getting lost in his patterns is a bit of a zen experience, so this is a statement to wear this bag, for sure, but it is also a bit of on-the-go therapy.

It's nice to have a signature fragrance, but often it's good to mark the start of a new year with a new perfume — or some other new beginning. Much like getting your hair cut, you can accumulate your personal energy by wearing a new perfume. Can we recommend changing your direction to one of the latest scents created by Hedi Slimane for Celine? "Nightclubbing," as the title implies, with dark undertones that hark back to those seemingly never-ending nights that are the essence of being young — living carelessly in the world, going out on weekends, just seeing where the evening's energy takes you. This fragrance truly brings Slimane's signature heady, nocturnal aesthetic alive with notes of tree moss, vanilla and musk. A shift in lifestyle is just one spritz away. A suggestion for a great night out: this perfume pairs perfectly with Grace Jones' Nightclubbing listening.

Geobaskets have been manufactured by Olmar and Mirta in Modena, Italy, as most of Rick Owens's apparel and footwear. They have an iconic vulcanized rubber sole seen on most Rick Owens shoes, recognizable by a serrated outsole and a singularly ridged 270 degrees stitched midsole that stretches far up the toebox. This sole adds a lot to the feel, toughness and heft of the shoe. Geobaskets have a prominent leather cushioned bottom, which is just above the collar of the shoe. They have substantial structuring, which helps the leather to retain its shape even with the worn soles. The perforated, extended toebox is designed not to crease as one would often find in leather boots – instead Rick Owens created padded folds at the tongue and toebox intersection that help when worn. The inner side of the shoe is accomplished with a heavy YKK chrome zipper. Although Geobaskets can be found in many different leathers, the most popular versions are made of a soft calf skin.

A LIST OF OUR FAVORITE THINGS DU JOUR MAKING US FEEL INSPIRED

Although it marks a social status and indicates many other profiles of a person, wearing luxury fashion brands might not always be the most exciting thing for fashion lovers – it is exactly the opposite – wearing the obvious copies. In 2014, a new fashion trend emerged on all social platforms, massively supported by different kinds of fashion lovers including bloggers, high end fashionistas, magazine editors, celebrities, and even the designers themselves. The trend is about playful variations of typography in actual brand names. Hence, CELINE became “CELINE ME ALONE”, HERMES Paris became “HABIBI Dubai”, Givenchy became “I don’t give a f*ck”, while all these kept the authentic style of a real brand - its original typeface, form, and overall appearance on a garment.

Considering that today we live in a world where labels, logos and 'filter-perfected' lifestyle standards are constantly added into our news feeds, it comes as no surprise that many fashion houses, run by designers who grew up in the last age of logomania and are now leading Generation Social Media, chose to play in their collections with a little creative typography. There are not many individuals as hard to please as the crowd of fashion. They are a fairly diverse group when it comes to taste, style, what is trendy, what is interesting and what's important. Thus, for graphic designers working on anything destined for fashionista consumption is a pretty tough call. Behind the scenes, the typography is influenced by the most unpredictable things, things that did not exist twenty years ago, and that will most certainly continue to change fashion and the typography in future.

Rick Owens refuses to be restricted by the perceived parameters of what is aesthetically acceptable in fashion.

“I think that for everybody, the main thing in life is to be listened to. To be listened to by someone who loves you, to be listened to by a lover, to be listened to by children who you want to teach. You want to express yourself and for people to respond.”

The trend is about playful variations of typography in actual brand names.

PLAYFUL VARIATIONS OF TYPOGRAPHY IN ACTUAL BRAND NAMES

Last Friday, Celine Fashion House's creative director Hedi Slimane, presented his own movie selection for the Mubi streaming service. Among the favorite films of Slimane there are several Hollywood classics, hits of the New Wave and Italian cinema - the designer has chosen ten biggest film directors, from Francis Ford Coppola to Michelangelo Antonioni.

Slimane's compilation is going to be available on Mubi until May 31st. Depending on the country, the list of films may differ, however Celine suggests to not be limited only by Hedi's selection and opens access to all Mubi's content for the whole month.

Apocalypse Now (Francis Ford Coppola, 1979)

Le Cercle Rouge (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1970)

Red Desert (Michelangelo Antonioni, 1964)

The 400 Blows (François Truffaut, 1959)

Below you will find a few interesting facts from Hedi Slimane's life:

Hedi Slimane started sewing at the age of sixteen

The future star of fashion design was born in 1968 in Paris, to the atelier owners family. The statement that fashion is in his blood is not an exaggeration. As per his own admission, he started sewing at the age of sixteen, when he had not thought of becoming a fashion designer yet.

Hedi Slimane began his career at Yves Saint Laurent

A good many recall Hedi as the creative director of Saint Laurent in the 2010s, but not everyone knows that his career has begun within the walls of the same fashion house. Since 1997, Edie worked there a little more than two years before leaving for Dior.

Same as Karl Lagerfeld, Hedi Slimane has a great interest in photography. In addition to several albums and solo exhibitions, he used to create covers for Icon and The New York Times Style Magazine, shoot for Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar. Lady Gaga's The Fame Monster album cover has also been created by Hedi Slimane.

Celine Fashion House's creative director Hedi Slimane, presented his own movie selection for the Mubi streaming service.

Is completed by casting austere yet delicate models to illuminate the archetypes behind the clothes.

The fashion industry is one where every detail counts, from the buttons down to the shoelaces. As such, each creative choice is not desultory but part of a larger statement about the comprehensive and all-encompassing vision of a brand, from the sweep of a model’s hair to the color of his or her eyes. In fact, contrary to popular belief, the model isn’t merely a human hanger, but a living embodiment of what the brand strives for, for the type of person who is supposed to live a life in these particular clothes. It’s no mistake that some runways are populated with beefy muscle-bound men who bring to mind sun-kissed Greek gods, while others feature willowy, brooding boys who look just like this side of adolescence. These are choices that have been thought out to an obsessive degree. The model is, in a way, a substitute for the viewer. It’s saying that yes, these are the clothes you should wear, but, more importantly, this is the person you will become when you wear them. What more tantalizing dream of fashion, of beauty, is there?

“You arrive at a story, a culture, a personal language that is different from those of the house. You have to be yourself, against all odds. “

“I have always interpreted the idea of masculinity as being embodied in other ways than through the body, the muscles, the commonplaces of virility.”

“I was always interested in the in “beginnings”, in the idea of the first suit, the pleasure and the young desire of a first jacket, a jacket for going out, some kind of tailoring for man devoid of statutory character, far from the constraints and conventions of the banker’s suit. This had to involve a redefinition of the codes and the silhouette.”

Is completed by casting austere yet delicate models to illuminate the archetypes behind the clothes. 

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