March 31, 2026 |
Lensed by Tim Walker, McQueen’s first dedicated Manta bag campaign unfolds like a submerged reverie. Immersed in a glistening pool of crystal clear water, model Vivien Solari moves with the bag slung over her arm and gripped in her hands, doused and weightless, sublimating a quiet, otherworldly tension. Pockets of air gather and release as she glides beneath the surface, her strawberry-hued hair fanning out to frame her face, set against the saturated blue that surrounds her.
Centring the De Manta bag, first introduced as part of the SS10 Plato’s Atlantis collection, conceived under the direction of Lee Alexander McQueen, this carryall distills the house’s enduring fixation with the natural world into something exacting and directional. As its name suggests, the design mirrors the form of the manta ray, realised through angular folds and a sharply sculpted geometry. Now available in smooth black, red and metallic gunmetal leather, it shifts seamlessly from the great blue to the city’s tempo. And for that added touch of glint, choose from pearl, crystal and chandelier chain charms to complete the piece.
“We wanted to bring the essence of the silhouette to life,” says creative director Seán McGirr, “exploring McQueen’s enduring relationship with nature. Working with Tim Walker, one of fashion’s great storytellers, it captures an energy at the heart of McQueen – at the threshold between calm and chaos.”
With art direction courtesy of SJ Todd, the campaign leans into an ethereal, wet-and-wild mood – poised between the aquatic kingdom and a high-gloss fashion set. And speaking of the set, designed by Gary Card, it evokes an otherworldly waterscape – an immersive, light-dappled expanse that feels both fluid and deliberately constructed, bringing the Manta bag, unequivocally, to life.
Shop the Manta bag here. Photography by Tim Walker, courtesy of McQueen.
