Eight weeks after a pair of drummers ushered in his first collection for the French house, dubbed PARIS LA NUIT, Dazed can exclusively reveal designer Hedi Slimane’s first ever Celine menswear campaign film.
A three-minute long montage of still images and video, the clip features a series of boys in the collection’s unisex skinny black suits, Christian Marclay collab jackets, and narrow, wraparound shades. Photographed in London in October, the images continue to explore the show’s inspiration of des Jeunes Gens Modernes – the youth of Paris’s post-punk and cold wave scene of the late 70s and early 80s.
The movement – chronicled in a 2008 documentary which, sadly, only exists in French – sprung up at a time when excitement over modernity and new technology (including increasingly affordable synthesisers) met against the backdrop of the Cold War and the leftover nihilism of punk. The result was a unique and energetic creative scene with a strong new wave aesthetic.
The Celine Summer 2019 menswear campaign film is set to the title track from once-obscure French band Ruth’s album Polaroïd/Roman/Photo, a record that reportedly only sold 50 copies when it was released in 1985. After being revived by cold wave fans in the early 00s, Ruth has had an unexpected second life. In the campaign film, the track’s distinctive Polaroid camera shutter noise is paired with images that cycle and transition, featuring what looks like a classic Prophet 5 synth, as well as a reel-to-reel tape recorder, alongside the models.
While some key accessories – like the ‘16’ bag – have already been released, the full ready-to-wear collection, including the entirely unisex tailoring, will be available in February.
Watch the full campaign below:
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