You can always depend on a Calvin Klein campaign to have more stars than an American flag. The designer’s latest for Spring 2020 is no exception, casting a wide net of fresh and established faces. International sensations like Maluma, SZA, Kendall Jenner, and Justin Bieber are featured along with upcoming talents like Lil Nas X, singer and actor Lay Zhang, and Euphoria actress Hunter Schafer.
The visual series was shot by the veteran photorgrapher Mario Sorrenti and the accompanying video was directed by Canaidan video maker Bardia Zeinali.Since the brand discontinued its ready-to-wear line early last year following the sudden departure of then-creative director Raf Simons, the CK Jeans and Underwear campaign is a reminder that the designer’s greatest strength lies in its ability to create simple, sexy, and cool pieces for sexy and cool people.
See for yourself — watch the Spring 2020 campaign for Calvin Klein Jeans and Underwear below.
Raf Simons has a new gig. Starting on April 2, the Belgian designer will join Prada as a co-creative director alongside Miuccia Prada.
“This partnership, encompassing all creative facets of the Prada label, is born from a deep reciprocal respect and from an open conversation – it is a mutual decision, proposed and determined by both parties,” the Italian brand said in a statement. “It opens a new dialogue, between designers widely acknowledged as two of the most important and influential of today.”
In addition to overseeing his own eponymous line, Simons has also enjoyed stints at Jil Sander and Dior. More recently he was appointed creative director of Calvin Klein, where his contributions to the American brand were met with a mixed response. (Read: people liked the clothes but they weren’t buying them.) He unceremoniously stepped down from the brand at the end of 2018. Since his departure, rumors of where Simons would land next moved circulated throughout the industry.
The combination of Prada’s classic elegance with Simons’ affinity for youth and club culture will no doubt breathe new life into the historic label. The first collection with his co-sign will be presented in September in Milan for Spring 2021.
One of the leading figures associated with the controversial yet undeniably influential ‘heroin chic’ trend of the mid-to-late ’90s, Davide Sorrenti’s untimely death at the age of 21 signified the end of an era. Alongside a new documentary chronicling his life (See Know Evil, directed by Charlie Curran), a new exhibition called Our Beutyfull Future at CC Projects in the East Village is showcasing some of the late photographer’s finest work.
In his brief yet prolific career, Sorrenti candidly captured the raw hedonism of the downtown Manhattan circuit with rich images that continue to influence the fashion world 20 years on. Born in Naples in 1976, he started his career in 1994 by photographing his friends around the city, including rising model Jaime King who became a frequent subject of his work. His style was an instant hit for its candor, and his work was quickly published in magazines like i-D, Interview, and Surface and mimicked in Calvin Klein‘s groundbreaking campaign with Kate Moss. His early death is often erroneously cited as the result of a heroin overdose, but Sorrenti had also dealt with a chronic blood disorder for most of his life that ultimately resulted in kidney failure. The exhibition aims to showcase some of his lesser known work and expand upon the narrative on one of the most seminal young photographers of his generation.
Our Beutyfull Future is on display until July 28 at 431 E 6th Street, NY 10009. Check out some of Sorrenti’s work in the gallery above.
Season 2 of Calvin Klein Jeans Est 1978 perpetuates an iconic Americana image as a nod at the heritage of the brand. The second delivery focuses on trucker jackets and bottoms alongside American staples such as a western shirt. The ideas of the West including rodeos, muscle cars, and stock-car cars are thus stamped on sharp acid wash denim pieces. It is a manner of infusing classics into today’s fashion.
Hedi Slimane to Show at Paris Fashion Week Men’s for Fall ’19
Image: Indigital.
After a hotly anticipated and polarizing Celine debut in September, Hedi Slimane will show at Paris Fashion Week Men’s. Taking place later this month, it marks the French label’s first ever official menswear show (though Slimane included a series of menswear looks in his Spring ’19 show — skinny suits, rocker influences, you know the deal) and will serve as an opportunity for the designer to prove he’s more than just a one trick pony. Fingers crossed.
Who will Replace Raf Simons at Calvin Klein?
Image: The Independent.
Raf Simons announced his departure from Calvin Klein at the tail-end of 2018, leaving us with yet another cliffhanger of who will be his successor. Simons was the chief creative officer for the American label for a little under two years and his collections were distinct for their strong and literal inspirations from film and television (his most recent collection featured predominant themes from Jaws, including graphic prints and neoprene diving suits). It would have been nice to see him continue to grow at the house, but so it goes. And there’s still no word on who will replace him yet so we’ve got that to look forward to.
Moschino Takes its Show to Rome
Image: David Maestr. Feature image: Arnaud Lafeuillade.
On January 8th (that’s next week if you can believe it), Moschino will show in Rome as part of Men’s Fashion Week. The Italian designer, which has previously shown in Milan and London, opted for the city’s Cinecittà Studios for its latest presentation as the collection is rumored to be inspired by director Federico Fellini, who filmed some of his greatest work there. Additionally, British designer J.W. Anderson will leave its home of London to present its FW19 collection in Paris later this month.
The First Ever Mugler Exhibition to Open in Montreal
Image: Mugler.
Thierry Mugler, the French designer who earned international acclaim for his spectacular runway shows and futuristic looks in the latter half of the 20th century, will get his first exhibition at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts later this spring. Curated by Thierry-Maxime Loriot (who was also responsible for the Jean-Paul Gaultier retrospective that traveled the world a few years ago), it marks the first time the designer’s work will be celebrated in its own show. Set to open on March 3rd, it’s likely that the show will embark on its own world tour in the fall.
Margiela Gets his Own Documentary
Image: Marina Faust.
The ever mysterious Martin Margiela will be the focus on an upcoming documentary chronicling his affluential career. Titled Without Compromise, it’s billed as the first documentary that the reclusive designer himself has agreed to participate in, which is pretty major for a man who’s never released a proper picture of himself. Produced by Dogwoof, who also released the Vivienne Westwood documentary last year, the film is scheduled to premiere at Cannes.
BLDWN, the denim label founded as Baldwin in Kansas City back in 2009, is undergoing a major renovation. Under the creative direction of Johnathan Crocker, the label dropped the vowels from its name (just a day after Hedi Slimane nixed the accent from the Celine logo — is nothing sacred anymore?) in the midst of a total renovation meant to reinvent contemporary American fashion.
“The main focus has been building a modern American fashion brand, and it’s that idea of modernity that I think makes it interesting,” Crocker tells me during the Spring 2019 presentation. “The ideas are so rooted and associated with images of Americana, that modernity in American fashion seems to be a non sequitur.”
There’s been a resurgence in classic American iconography infiltrating fashion, stemming from Lady Gaga’s-cowboy-hat-toting Joanne era to Calvin Klein‘s cowboy-inspired Spring 2018 collection. So reinterpreting it in a more nuanced way seems a good move for the denim brand.
“From a distance, everything should look familiar but as you get closer, you realize there’s something new,” he says, pointing out changes to shirting plackets and other measurements that have been modified ever so slightly, to signify the new change. Check out some of the pieces below.
Raf Simons continues to heavily use literal film references for his Calvin Klein 205W39NYC productions. After referencing horror films for SS18 (like Rosemary’s Baby and Friday the 13th), the gritty Berlin drug biopic Christiane F. for FW19, it appears the designer was heavily inspired by Jaws — the first mainstream shark film — this time around for SS19.
Influences ranged from the literal (with shirts that had Jaws graphics printed on them) to slightly more figurative (like neoprene jumpsuits, which would be practical for shark hunting and other nautical activities). This theme was balanced by a graduation motif (fittingly inspired by The Graduate), which featured models wearing caps and gowns, in addition to the fringy tassels that have become ubiquitous with CK by Raf. Vaquera also did a school theme for its show, but we’ll leave that to Diet Prada to sort out. It’s definitely not a bad idea to use such mainstream references for a collection as it makes it more accessible to those who might not follow fashion as thoroughly as others, but this time it felt as though the inspiration was too literal, threatening to swallow it whole. I’d still wear the fringy pieces though.
To celebrate the end of summer, this week we’re publishing full cover stories from past issues of ESSENTIAL HOMME. Today, social media star Cameron Dallas discusses how he navigates his blossoming IRL celebrity.
Shot by Austin Hargrave. Styled by Jason Rembert. Words by Jonathan Shia.
In perhaps his most popular YouTube entry yet, Cameron Dallas does little more than sit for stitches. The social media superstar had cut his foot after stepping on a tin lid while filming with fellow vlogger Nash Grier. “Real talk, call 911 or something!” Dallas exclaims on screen. Narratively anticlimactic, the scene continues as the pair tries to lessen the gush. After heading to the hospital in an ambulance, Dallas grips his friend in pain while the wound is sewn up. That the video has been viewed nearly 18 million times (and counting) is reflective of what young fans have come to expect today—intimacy, humor, and a healthy dose of embarrassment.
Now 23, Dallas labels the video a “freakout,” confessing to a somewhat overblown reaction. But exaggeration is the natural language of social media, where melodrama only increases the chances of getting memed. The art of being a celebrity in 2017 requires openness and constant availability, whether you are Beyon- cé announcing your pregnancy with an elaborately arranged photo- shoot or a teenager from Southern California asking the doctor if you’ll have to “wear crutches.”
Since the hospital visit back in February 2014, Dallas has come a long way. With 5.6 million subscribers on YouTube and over 20 million on Instagram (now the most important platform), he has parlayed social media stardom into a web that now encompasses music, movies, his own Netflix series, and a new role as the face of Dolce & Gabbana. His is a fame that could not have existed even five years ago—before social media became a global pastime and a fount for new talent of all kinds. While there is no denying that Dallas’ boy-next-door good looks have leveraged his success, his status as one of the most prominent YouTube crossover stars proves there’s something more to the young adult. “I’m constantly surprised by what you can achieve through hard work and perseverance,” he says. “It’s crazy, the opportunities are endless.”
Dallas first started this social media journey in 2012, posting carefully curated photos of himself and funny videos that involved pranks and gags on Instagram and Vine. He says he never imagined back then that it would become a career, but rather that he was drawn to it for the same reasons any other teenager would be. “I just did it because I wanted to,” he laughs. “I did it to have fun.”It wasn’t long before Dallas began collecting his first fans, moments he recalls as “really special.” Without the layers of management and PR that celebrities from film, music, and sports are protected by, young social media stars are prized for their intimate connections with these rabid followers. Speaking directly to their fans—more often than not teenage girls—these new superstars are rewarded with passion and loyalty, something Dallas mentions he is careful to honor: “I love connecting with people directly,” he says.
With these built-in audiences, fashion crossover, it seems, was only inevitable. After tweeting “I want to be a Calvin Klein model,” in 2011, it became a literal dream come true when Dallas fronted the brand’s denim ad in early 2016, appearing also in the label’s #mycalvins campaign later that year. This past January, he reached a new level of prominence: In a shimmering printed suit, Dallas appeared in Dolce & Gabbana’s Autumn/Winter 2017 runway show, leading a lineup that also included other social media phenoms such as Luka Sabbat and Will Peltz, as well as a slew of notable celebrity spawn like Presley Gerber (son of Cindy Crawford), Rafferty Law (son of Jude), and Levi Dylan (grandson of Bob). The collection, which featured the brand’s trademark sharp tailoring and ornate detailing, was meant to serve as a bridge between the designers and a younger generation. “Domenico [Dolce] and Stefano [Gabbana] are amazing and really made me feel comfortable throughout the whole process,” he recalls. As the opener, Dallas was tasked to be the first on the runway as soon as the spotlights went on, but he tried to avoid nerves by focusing on the fun of the experience: “The one thing I was thinking about was not falling. I was just realistic and thought, ‘I’m not going to mess this up.’ But it would’ve been really funny if I had.”
Since then, Dallas has been named a brand ambassador for the house, starring in both its spring and fall ads this year. “I don’t work with a lot of luxury brands like this, but every time I put on Dolce & Gabbana’s clothes, it feels like they were specially made for me,” he says. “I love the craftsmanship and I love the time and energy [the designers] spend to craft these pieces. It’s another form of art and I’m really humbled by the amount of work they put into it. The fact that they even let me appear in their campaigns is amazing.”
For someone used to being dressed by his mother (“She did an amazing job,” he jokes. “Shoutout to my mom.”), this deep and sudden immersion into the fashion world is both exciting and educa- tional. “I still don’t know a lot of things and I have to look to people to teach me,” Dallas says. “Fashion has been a tool for me to grow as a person. You can really express yourself in different ways and show how creative you can be.” It’s all gone so well, in fact, that he’s plan- ning his own line of clothing some time in the near future. “Yes, 100 percent,” he promises.
In the meantime, there’s the second season of his Netflix reality show, “Chasing Cameron,” to work on. Following Dallas, his family, and his friends from the Magcon circuit, the series of meet-and- greet events that let fans interact with their favorite social media personalities in real life debuted last December. And, while some reviews found it both gratuitous and strangely guarded, it was another step forward in the growth of the brand of Cameron Dallas. “I wrote the idea in my notebook a year-and-a-half ago and just put my eye on the prize and went for it,” he explains. “In terms of the honesty and authenticity, the show is exactly what I wanted. That’s what I like to do—that’s what we aim for.”
Even as his name finds new titles, Dallas hasn’t left behind the YouTube channel that brought him original prominence. In his most recent video the production values are unquestionably higher, but the same spirit of joy remains as he pranks a friend by filling his apartment with an inflatable bouncy castle. Dallas—like any young adult—still wants to have fun, but he is aware that he has a powerful voice he can use for good. “I think every day is an opportunity, so I’m constantly working on myself as a person and trying to help people around me,” he offers. “It’s important as a human to be nice and want more for others than from others.”
CALVIN KLEIN 205W39NYC has released its newest campaign for Fall/Winter 2018. Styled by Olivier Rizzo and shot by Willy Vanderperre, the dynamic image series sees models in a picturesque mountainside landscape donning knitted headpieces and dramatic outerwear. There’s an otherworldly quality to the photos that corresponds perfectly to the striking shapes and tone of the rest of the collection. See for yourself below~
Calvin Klein is launching a new denim line — CALVIN KLEIN JEANS EST. 1978 — tomorrow. Overseen by Raf Simons, the drop will be the first of an ongoing three-part series spread throughout the fall. The collection aims to embody the brand’s staple items (including trucker hats, hoodies, and obviously denim) while incorporating elements of today’s youth culture. The unisex items add a new twist to classic silhouettes, which are adorned with photographic prints of traditional Americana such as stars, stripes, and bald eagles. Take a look at some highlights below. Images courtesy of the designer.
CALVIN KLEIN JEANS EST. 1978 launches online tomorrow.
For Calvin Klein 205W39NYC Pre-Fall ’18, Raf Simons manipulated the utilitarian standards of traditional American attire to create a fresh collection injected with pop fervor, courtesy of Andy Warhol. The line features a trophy of cultural references, each distorted and altered to provide a new context — denim and sherpas are a more obvious nod to Western influence, while fitted and dramatic silhouettes demonstrate the brand’s signature urban design sensibility while challenging convention. Accessories are adorned with altered Andy Warhol prints, as part of an ongoing partnership with The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, which gives the designer access and rights to a number of exclusive prints from the Pop Artist himself.
The Calvin Klein 205W39NYC Pre-Fall ’18 collection is available at Calvin Klein stores and online on May 21.
