A quiet, young man who defines a new kind of masculinity with his fashion: With role models such as David Bowie and Pete Doherty, Hedi Slimane combines androgyny, elegance and rock and roll in his fashion creations.
The first steps
The son of a Tunisian father and an Italian mother, Hedi Slimane was born on the 5th. Born July 1968 in the city of fashion: Paris. Due to his love of photography, he grew up looking through the lens of his camera and discovered indie rock and the underground scene for himself along the way: however, wild hairstyles and piles of cigarettes are not for him – Hedi prefers to be a spectator of events and appears rather shy with his scrawny and quiet stature.
This also shows him the way to fashion: he is so thin that the clothes off the rack don’t fit him and he designs his own fashions.
The career
After leaving school, Hedi Slimane dreamed of a career as a journalist and so began the right course of study; after a few weeks, however, he switched to politics and art history at the Ecole du Louvre in Paris. After graduating, he became neither a journalist nor a politician – Slimane dedicated himself to the world of fashion.
From 1989 to 1992, he worked as a freelance art director and model scout for Parisian fashion designer José Levy. However, proper fashion training was out of the question for Hedi: “Training is a disaster for me because it forces you into a mold.” Nevertheless, thanks to Levy, he makes an important acquaintance with a well-connected fashion and PR manager: Jean Jacques Picart.
From then on, Hedi was Picart’s closest assistant and accompanied him to fashion shows and exhibitions until Pierre Berge, Yves Saint Laurent’s partner, brought him into the YSL fashion house in 1996. Hedi’s new post? Head designer of the men’s collection!
Hedi Slimane revolutionized Yves Saint Laurent until 1999. Rock and roll word high fashion: androgynous models on the catwalks, black leather jackets, pronounced waistlines and extra-slim skinny jeans are now the new standards in men’s fashion. Slimane’s inspiration comes from artists and groups such as David Bowie, the Rolling Stones and The Clash: “Music is actually more important to me than anything else. Everything I’ve done in menswear has to do with music and musicians.”
After YSL was sold to the Gucci Group in 1999, Hedi quit his job and moved to Berlin to devote himself to photography. He immerses himself in rock culture, discovers the Berlin art scene and produces his own photo books as well as a blog on which he records his pictures.
From the end of 2000, Slimane designs for the LVMH Group and is now head designer for the men’s collections for Dior Homme – expanding the Dior inventory considerably. He also designs sneakers, men’s grooming ranges, iPod holders and pieces of furniture for the androgynous size zero man. Karl Lagerfeld is so taken with Hedi Slimane’s Dior suits that he goes on a strict diet and loses 40 kilograms to fit into Slimane’s suits (“You know, I’m an artist, fashion designer, photographer in the body of a provincial notary. I want them to help me get the body that suits me. And I want to be able to wear Hedi Slimane’s suits”).
The 2007/2008 winter collection is his last at Dior: he has reached an impasse and can no longer develop his own style. After lengthy discussions, he leaves Dior and moves to Los Angeles – where he devotes himself to photography again and takes a five-year break from the fashion circus.
In March 2012, it is time to return – back to the Yves Saint Laurent fashion house. This time, Hedi is given full creative responsibility and makes the most of it: he applies for a design office in L.A., renames the fashion house “Saint Laurent Paris” and creates a completely new image for the brand. According to the Financial Times, this change will increase the company’s turnover from 353 million euros in 2011 to up to 974 million euros in 2015. Hedi ended his time at Saint Laurent in March 2016 and has since been commuting between Paris and L.A. to work on small photography projects.
Since 2018, Hedi Slimane has been the new Artistic, Creative and Image Director for LVMH Celine after Phoebe Philo and presents his aesthetic for fashion and design here too – although he has come in for a lot of criticism. Used to Phoebe Philo’s soft colors and cuts, Hedi’s harsh looks are not really well received in the fashion world – instead of sophisticated and elegant, it is more like a second version of Saint Laurent. It is also noticeable that he also likes to play with the brand name here and leave his mark: “Céline” becomes “Celine” as quickly as “Yves Saint Laurent” became “Saint Laurent”. Nevertheless, he continues to enrich the fashion label with full boutiques, sold-out collections and a lot of attention and does what he does best – fashion and photography: “The less I explain, the better I do. Honors are important for others. What interests me is doing things”.
