Hedi Slimane stages Celine menswear ’show that never was’

The energetic, rebellious spirit of the early 2000s New York art scene – personified by the late artist Dash Snow and his creative milieu – infuses Hedi Slimane’s latest menswear offering for Celine, which was shown via a short film by the designer yesterday (28 November 2023).

Titled ‘Delusional Daydream’, Slimane deemed it the ‘show that never was’, having been postponed from earlier this summer when riots and social unrest engulfed Paris after the police shooting of a teenager. Set to take place at La Gaité Lyrique – a musical venue housed within a former Haussmann theatre opened in 1862 – Slimane said at the time that a fashion show would be ‘inconsiderate and totally out of place’.

‘Delusional Daydream’: Celine Homme S/S 2024 

The film sees Slimane return to La Gaité Lyrique, creating a gilded mirrored runway set within the space, while La Grand Rex – a vast 1930s cinema and Parisian landmark – also features in sweeping external views, crested with ‘Celine’ written in rotating lights. In dramatic style, the film finishes with a sequined caped model standing on the roof of the historic cinema, emitting shimmering sparks up towards a star-filled Parisian style.

Other scenes are filmed in the grand auditorium of the Monte Carlo Opéra-Garnier, featuring the classical ballet dancer and model Laurids Seidel. The soundtrack – in an echo of Celine’s most recent womenswear collection, shown in October – is provided by LCD Soundsystem, who rework their 2002 song ‘Losing My Edge’, which featured on the band’s eponymous 2005 album. Slimane has previously called it one of ’the most influential sounds in indie electronic music and club scenes’. 

Indeed, this clash – between the classical surrounds of the Opéra-Garnier and the grinding sounds of the early 2000s club scene – provides much of the energy behind the collection. References to the indie dress codes that Slimane helped to define during his influential tenure at Dior Homme that began in 2001 (razor-sharp tailoring, skinny leather trousers and ties, dark sunglasses) meet flourishes taken from traditional haute couture – from trailing satin bows and sashes to narrow bustier tops, as well as swathes of sequins and embroidery.

The last, said Slimane, came from viewing ceremonial portraits of the 17th-century French court, particularly the classic Baroque works of Pierre Mignard. Contemporary works by Snow – chosen from the Dash Snow Archive and largely comprising typographic pieces featuring cut-out newspaper headlines – also feature in the collection. Best known for his Polaroid portraits of his friends and creative circle, Slimane has a longstanding relationship with Snow, having featured his works in ‘Sweet Bird of Youth‘, a 2007 group show at Arndt & Partner in Berlin curated by the designer.

It is a period that Slimane has been particularly preoccupied with in recent seasons, including his S/S 2024 womenswear collection, ‘La Collection de la Bibliothèque Nationale’, which looked back towards the androgynous tailoring of the early 2000s. And, just last week, he revealed an unexpected festive window display by American artist Banks Violette, one of Snow’s contemporaries whose work also featured in ‘Sweet Bird of Youth‘.

Completing the collection were the usual enticing array of leather goods and accessories, including the new ‘Malaquais Cabas’ tote bag – a sleek, rectangular top-handle tote in varying leather and suede – as well as a new iteration of the slouchy ‘Romy’ bag in Triomphe monogram canvas, the house’s distinct leitmotif inspired by the decorative chains surrounding Paris’ Arc de Triomphe.

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