A still from Hedi Slimane's "Symphonie Fantastique". Photography courtesy of Celine. Hedi Slimane, the creative, artistic and image director for Céline has directed a 14.5 minute video for Céline’s Winter 2024 Men’s Collection.
“Symphonie Fantastique” was filmed in the Mojave Desert in California in January and February this year, to French composer Hector Berlioz’s 1830 symphony of the same name, once described by Leonard Bernstein as the first psychedelic symphony ever composed. Berlioz described it as an “immense instrumental composition of a new genre”.
Slimane discovered the symphony at age 11 and became passionate about the romantic musical piece. The video, which starts when a jukebox drops from the sky and the symphony begins, showcases tailored capes, double-breasted leather jackets and cowboy boots alongside black Cadillacs, mountainous ranges and a long, deserted highway.
According to Céline, the collection marks the return of tailoring with frock coats, three buttoned suits and hand-embroidered waistcoats cut from silk, cashmere and vicuna, while matte black and satin dominate.
