Here's why we like Celine by Michael Rider so much Last Saturday's FW26 collection confirmed that there is a new star at LVMH
Reinventing oneself is difficult for people, let alone for brands. And where there are brands that have been reinventing themselves for over a decade, and others that instead must quickly find a new identity after the departure of a celebrated creative director, at Celine the art of renewing seems as easy as a somersault. It wasn't a given. After the golden age of Phoebe Philo and the commercial boom triggered by Hedi Slimane, Michael Rider had to confront a brand that had already changed twice and would have to do it a third time. But as demonstrated by the Celine FW26 collection presented last Saturday, Rider's third for the brand, the handover was, more than fluid, almost miraculous.
We'll say it right away: the success of Michael Rider's Celine, which among critics has been immediate and instinctive, is due to his ability to create right from the start a precise identity and silhouette. To quote Mario Abad, who expressed this concept with great conciseness: «Square shoulders, elongated shape, narrow waist, slightly asymmetrical cut, single-button closure. He made it his signature so quickly». We could also add elements like accumulations of jewelry, the vibrant use of primary colors, the presence of flared sleeves and legs, the exaggerated lapels of the jackets that create a unique dynamism when paired with slim pants.
Last Saturday's show actually saw the volumes of the first two collections more disciplined, although obviously still present. What strikes most about the construction of the garments is the way the fabric, always very compact, maintains its shape creating, more than rigidity, a distinctive consistency, a sense of elasticity and precise intention. It's a functional beauty but not only, since the "system" of proportions and textures clashes in the most cheerful and vital way possible with pleasantly eccentric styling in which belts, collars, cascades of pendants, hats but also color combinations seem almost to spring, leap forward.
The show notes of the collection say it all. Even without describing a precise theme or talking about the constructions of the garments, the notes written by Rider perfectly condense a vibe. «Talking about style without irony. Intuition before strategy. Feeling it rather than planning it». And then again: «In the best cases, CELINE is a style: a mix of old and new that conveys a sense of urgency and dream. It realizes what we all dream of finding and wearing. Something slightly out of the ordinary. Strength. A small rebellion. Contradiction, imperfection, character. Eccentricity. I love when under fantastic clothes a messy, complex, and layered inner life shines through. I think of people with style who wear beautiful clothes in a personal way. People you want to look at, approach, with whom you want to spend vacations. People with charm. People with grit».
In their extreme conciseness, and with all due respect to poets and philosophers, these are perhaps the best show notes of the season. They are because they explain the essence of the collection and demonstrate a perfect alignment between the creative director's intentions and execution: the effect is univocal, sharp, no need to interpret it. But in wanting to talk about characters with an inner life, contradictions and singularity, Rider manages to give Celine its own identity that is new, and therefore still to be fully known, but that already seems complete, that is finished. And in a season like this, where it is personality that distinguishes fashion from “luxury slop”, it is precisely this sense of originality derived from personal taste that makes the brand stand out.
