It has taken me a few seasons to adjust to the current state
of affairs at the NEW Saint Laurent as opposed to the YSL we all came to
revere, adore and respect. Mr. Slimane
is intent on not changing the essence of the brand but slamming us on the head
and beating it into us that this is HIS Saint Laurent.
Each collection, including Resort 2014, is filled with hubris
and the ”I dare you”
attitude” that he seems to
project since he took the reins and changed the name as if to reinforce this is
HIS way. Well, hard as it is to believe,
he uses the DNA of the brand, he might stretch the reference until it is
microscopically thin, but the DNA is there.
Please do not get me wrong, this is not a ringing endorsement of his
design prowess or his vision for the house.
Resort 2014 shows us again his my way or the highway
attitude by shooting the look book, yes he thinks he is the Helmut Newton of
our time, as a series of photos that might be and will be used in the advertising
for the house. As if to say who cares
about you, he takes it a step further by photographing in black and white. That’s just dandy but really, get over
yourself and realize that you didn’t invent the way business is conducted and
you won’t change it either. Sorry, Hedi,
the clothes still must sell to stores, even “your “own and then they have to
sell to that client/customer so let’s have a closer look at what this
wunderkind is proposing.
The shawl collar blazer which seems to have now become a cornerstone
of the new Saint Laurent is in danger of disappearing; if Mr. Slimane shrinks
it anymore the model will be carrying it as a handbag and PLEASE let me point
out that the basic style is “bargain priced” at around $3600 USD retail…. Who
wouldn’t want to be constricted in this for that price? The few total looks he photographs are
certainly adequate enough but if one has a resume of more than 3 years, one
might see the immediate references of other houses. Horrors, yes Hedi, it is you did not invent
these looks. Really now, a Saint Laurent
Birkin...surely you can do better, and then the leather pants, shrunken blazer
and sheer blouse with chained strapped logo envelope bag... even the words
conjure an image of Chanel . BTW, kudos
for the YSL cuff which I am sure will be priced as if it is precious jewelry.
Yes, in your Kool Aid induced design frenzy, you have
deigned to use the original YSL jacket idea as show pieces for the collection
exceptt one can only imagine the stratospheric prices that they entail being
that they are totally embellished or encrusted but again, if ones memory was
longer than 5 years, one might recall a house by the name of St. Martin that
had showrooms full of that sort of thing.
When all is said and done, it is still all about clothes, clothes that
sell, clothes that induce lust and clothes that sell at retail.
In some twisted convoluted way, you must be thinking they
will buy what I give them and tell them to wear... there is a problem there,
you are not Karl Lagerfeld and your brand is not Chanel and thusly lies the fly
in the ointment. It is also odd that the
majors and even the magazines choose not to advertise and editorialize the
“mood/brood” part of your collections but the more commercial aspects of it
like...COLOR!
Anyway, the collection is somewhat more appealing that the
beginning ones but it is kicking and screaming its way to being a bit more
grown up. He might want to reconsider
using a model that doesn’t look strung out or just finished with a roll in the hay
as Mr. Slimane just might be targeting the wrong kind of girl. In essence, all this mood and posturing is
getting very boring which means that there is no longer any urgency in seeing
this collection as it just trudges onward in the same way…. Yawn!
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