Watching Michael Rider’s first stand-alone men’s show for Celine on the last day of Paris Men’s Fashion Week, and at the end of a rather sluggish menswear season in Europe, it felt like we were finally seeing something completely new.
The only problem is that it’s hard to put your finger on it. His look for Celine is not quite preppy, not quite bohemian, not quite rocker, not quite nerd, not quite Goth, not quite minimalism and not quite off-duty ballet dancer.
It had elements of all of those tribes, but it was the result of something greater than styling, because individual garments and details would also grab your attention: the way a flap pocket on a shirt was yanked much higher than usual, or how the cuffs jutted out; how a muscle shirt was cinched in the back with lacing; how a bright green or red sweater had matching leather elbow patches, or how pants — whether flares, stovepipes or harem shapes — were just a tad shorter than you normally would expect.
Rider’s penchant for surprise and breaking things up extended to the show set: a white box with scaffolding and benches, on which he placed cream cushions, interrupted randomly with printed ones.
The young models streamed out thick and fast, and each seemed to have his own vibe and thought bubble. You couldn’t tell if they were on their way to university, a job interview, Coachella or some wellness convention. What united them was Rider’s distinct hand with clothes, his love of color and a sense of luxury that feels fresh.
“We make the characters we want to be,” Rider told journalists after the show, describing a “sense of freedom” and a belief that within Celine “there are multitudes, and that is exciting to me.”
He also described a team effort akin to a musical jam session: “We try it all on. We have to want it. We build on it with each other.”
A low-key hippie feeling was heightened by fringed headbands, hobo pouches slung over the body or semiprecious stones affixed to the forehead.
Asked about the latter oddball styling, Rider said he was thinking about how young people experiment with their bodies, “whether it’s tattoos or your first nose ring”
“I had one,” he said, raising his hand for emphasis.
What was so exhilarating about his show was the range of silhouettes and attitudes, which was echoed in the footwear. Rider’s lace-up ballet shoes for men have been hugely influential, and here was a new array of ultra-flat, slipper-like shoes and boots, banged-up sneakers, earthy sandals and killer two-tone monk straps.
Along with the invitation, Rider dispatched beaded necklaces, and he wore one gifted by his buddy Walt Cassidy, who went by the name Waltpaper back when he was a New York City club kid. Rider toyed with it and described how it’s like an heirloom to him, so precious.
On the runway, the designer spiked his ensembles with a jeweled brooch here, a strand of chunky wooden beads there. Some models were accessorized with colorful cummerbunds or an oversize square of heavy satin stuffed in a pocket, squashed in a bag or clutched in one hand.
What was that all about?
“I like to find a new way to have some flair,” Rider replied with a grin.
