The designer offered up a collection that is in stark contrast to the brand’s much-loved masculine-meets-feminine aesthetic
Former Saint Laurent designer Hedi Slimane has presented his first collection for the French fashion house Celine, and it’s a far cry from the elegant, female-focused design philosophy that under the leadership of Phoebe Philo cultivated a die-hard following.
After debuting a new logo (sans the é accent) and his first Celine bag on the arm of Lady Gaga, many wondered what the new creative director had up his sleeve and according to the SS19 runway, Slimane is sticking to the rock-n-roll, ’80s glam he made his signature at Saint Laurent. The collection, which featured both men’s and women’s, included ultra-short skirts, bare shoulders and poufy silhouettes. It was a controversial move for the designer as Celine is known for not equating a woman’s power with her sexuality.
“You don’t enter a fashion house to imitate the work of your predecessor. You have to be yourself, against all odds”, Slimane told Le Figaro, a newspaper in France.
Here’s a look at how the world reacted to Celine 01, as the show was entitled.
since apparently people think celine started when phoebe came along in 2008, here's celine ss2003 vs celine ss2019 pic.twitter.com/aBw8uoMceW
— zara (@frenchmonsara) September 29, 2018
Zara, fashion enthusiast
Behold the new CELINE woman pic.twitter.com/oaSLlmOt9K
— bryanboy (@bryanboy) September 28, 2018
Bryan Boy, blogger
Talk about Saint Laurent deja vu… while this might be Hedi Slimane’s aesthetic, how does Céline go from Phoebe Philo to this. Her clothes celebrated women, this just reeks of gloom ??♀️ #RipCeline pic.twitter.com/Khj3xzIJFv
— Folakemi Campbell (@Fk_Campbell) September 29, 2018
Folakemi Campbell, fashion designer
Phoebe Philo vs Hedi Slimane. It’s a whole new world. #Celine pic.twitter.com/lWnpljrvr5
— Athificial (@Miss_Athi) September 29, 2018
Athi-Afikile Myataza, PR maven
Pheobe Philo created amazing clothes for a category of women who had never been addressed before, so I'm sad to see that that spirit is gone.There is nothing here that is reminiscent of the house of #Celine and I have no clue where we go from here (to shop especially)
— Kim Weber (@KimWeber) September 28, 2018
Kim Weber, makeup artist
MOJEH goes backstage with Kendall Jenner, Gigi Hadid and more at all the best SS19 shows.
- Words by Gracie Stewart