With body-hugging clothes and a half-naked Iggy Pop, there was a brief human touch at a brilliant Celine fashion show in Los Angeles.
Sabine Rothig
Iggy Pop topless at the Celine show in LA: Even as an elderly star, he likes to show his audience unveiled.Dro/Fusion Babies
The Angels–When 75-year-old Iggy Pop stripped off his Celine blazer on stage Thursday, revealing his shirtless torso, the elders knew a legend was performing their “signature move.”
The younger ones suddenly became aware of a weather-beaten body, which perhaps made them adore it all the more. Body positivity, hello?! If only it hadn’t been for the grip on the crown jewels, let’s leave it at that. The flawless singing was comforting, not everything inevitably passes with age. You can also forgive Iggy Pop a lot because he has a funny white parrot that we can watch headbanging on Instagram while his owner is smiling sympathetically in a white bathrobe on the king-size bed.
On Thursday evening at 8 p.m., French luxury brand Celine presented a new women’s collection at the legendary The Wiltern in Los Angeles. After the fashion show, rock stars performed, most notably Iggy Pop. The theater, named for its location on the corner Wilshire boulevard and western Avenue, is a legendary California concert venue. The stage boards of the art deco building, inaugurated in 1931, have soaked up the sweat of Prince, James Brown, Neil Young, Patty Smith and Amy Winehouse. It’s no wonder that Celine’s creative director Hedi Slimane chose this venue for his fashion show, given his weakness for legendary locations. The overflowing momentum of rock ‘n’ roll, which the fashion designer, who also takes photos and films, often aestheticizes in black and white, was completed that evening in an extremely realistic, colorful party full of sweat and screams.
Thin body and big pockets
But the focus was initially on the new collection, which was presented on the concert stage. And just looking at them gave me the feeling that Hedi Slimane had found his way back to his roots with slim, elegant silhouettes: skinny jeans, tight leather trousers, flattering boho tops, uniform-inspired jackets with golden buttons, fake fur, biker boots, wide belts, narrow scarves, many chains and roomy pockets. And for the evening, floor-length dresses with spaghetti straps in simple cuts, but made of pure glitter. Everyone can really agree on that, these are boho and indie classics in their purest form.
Hedi Slimane is a master of slim silhouettes. After an excursion into the world of elephant jeans, he finally turns back to skinny jeans.Celine
Even though it’s the women’s Celine collection for next winter, men are also walking the runway – as is currently the case with many designers.Celine
Always wearable: uniform-inspired jackets with gold-colored buttons.Celine
After all 89 looks had passed the stage to a soundtrack by The White Stripes, Iggy Pop, The Strokes and Interpol as well as The Kills entered the hall with a DJ set. The whole thing is consistent. But still it seems that this presentation is a niche event. No live stream, no video on YouTube shortly after the show, as has been the case with the other big fashion houses since Corona. The perfectionist Slimane sometimes takes several weeks before he publishes a video of a show on the Internet. Has Celine now become an indie act herself?
Hedi Slimane is successful with Celine
The answer: No, Celine is a silent champion. While there’s a lot of media attention right now about scandals (Balenciaga), departures (Gucci) and ends (Raf Simons) in the fashion industry, nobody seems to care about the once celebrated Dior Homme designer Hedi Slimane. Why should it, there are no catastrophes to report. The brand also likes to hold its shows outside of the official Fashion Week dates – a signal that is sometimes perceived as elitist and snobbish in the industry, since you have to travel extra for the Celine appointment, if you have an invitation at all is. So many ignore the label.
In the past, all of this reinforced the impression that the LVMH subsidiary might simply no longer be relevant. After popular designer Phoebe Philo left Celine’s creative directorship and Hedi Slimane took over in 2018, the fashion house said goodbye to an intellectual, female fan base and turned to a younger, subculture-savvy audience. A move that drew a lot of criticism. The fact that Hedi Slimane didn’t constantly reinvent himself with Celine and initially weakened a bit in the women’s line fueled a lot of malice.
But the numbers speak a different language. Apparently Celine has only been going uphill for years. According to a recent report by The Business of Fashion, experts at the Paris-based company Celine SA expect annual sales of at least 2.2 billion euros for 2022. The brand itself has confirmed a 2.5x increase in sales since Slimane was appointed creative director, the article continues.
The equanimity with which Slimane delivers not only the women’s line, but also a men’s line he established is not only remarkable, but also entrepreneurially successful. Slimane’s stylistic stringency is reliable, the designs wearable. And the link to music provides the necessary pinch of rebellion that makes his fashion mysterious and attractive. And last but not least, the fine sophistication of his designs also celebrates a lost sexiness in a world of oversized jackets and chunky boots. You can already feel it, the comeback of elegance is imminent. Celine could play a big part in that.
Red carpet inspo: simply beautiful dresses by Hedi Slimane.Celine
All of the videos that Hedi Slimane made for Celine can be found on the brand’s YouTube channel.