Designer, photographer, ‘brand architect’ and PR rookie, Hedi Slimane, has recruited androgyne Dutch supermodel Saskia de Brauw as the angular face of the Spring 2013 Menswear campaign for Saint Laurent Paris (formerly Yves Saint Laurent). It’s kind of a big deal, because Saskia is – no big secret here – a beautiful woman and the campaign is for beautiful menswear. See what Hedi’s done here? He’s playing with gender inversion, because fashion is pretty progressive and society is slowly starting to recognise that concepts of gender are fluid and, while we might not all look like Saskia or Andrej or any other number of androgynous stunners who give cause for much serious introspection, we’re free to shop between the racks should we so choose.
Appropriately titled ‘The Saint Laurent Boy is a Girl‘, the campaign trades on de Brauw’s striking features, enviable ability to work a mop top and boundless limbs that highlight both Slimane’s signature slim tailoring and chiaroscuro photography. The menswear companion to SS13’s tepidly received womenswear collection features many of the same design elements, including fitted tuxedo jackets that recall Saint Laurent’s iconic Le Smoking rendered in single-breasted black wool, sequins and leather.
Slimane previously worked with
Christopher Owens on the introductory campaign to his new vision of the storied house, the fruits of which you can revisit
here. The SS13 Menswear collection is slated to arrived in stores and online just in time for SS13 (Northern Hemisphere) and a single-breasted tuxedo will set you back approximately $3,414 or your soul.
