May 31, 2017 |
I often say that the two qualifications for enjoying Phoebe Philo’s work at the house of Céline are 1) being a woman and 2) having a pulse. However, I would like to add that, certainly amongst Ten Towers at least, there are a number of fashionistos (that’s the boy version) who also are partial to Ms Philo’s clothing and, as I plan to be buried in full-look Céline, who needs a pulse either? It’s really easy to wax lyrical about a Céline collection, mainly because they are always very very good, but on receipt of these images last week (embargoed until today) I must say that we’re extra partial to this latest offering – Philo’s Fall 2017 (a Céline-ism for Pre-Fall) collection for the house. There’s something hearty about this. A kilt says hearty, especially when it’s floor-length, and there are six of them here, pointing to this fullness of fabric throughout – heavy mannish overcoats or roomy shirts, some checkered, or those trousers that rise up far beyond the waist and fasten with an extra-long fly. But Philo’s vision at Céline has long taken the hard with the soft and here, that heaviness is offset with a strong femininity, a sense of womanliness. It’s found in the way that ties of silk loosely cinch the waist and fabrics gently drape on the body, subtly pointing to the female form beneath or in those flashes of red, on the clothes and slashed across the model’s lips. Because yes, Céline may be intellectual but that doesn’t mean it’s sexless – there’s a fluidity to it, a languid sensuality. Philo really does know how women woman to dress – design without agenda or suggestion – just beautiful, intelligent clothes.
Céline’s Fall 2017 collection is in stores now…
