Written By: Gemma White
Rider conceptualizes a snapshot of the enduring love affair between American classics and signature French sartorial savoir-faire
It’s Paris. It’s Fashion Week. It’s raining (zut alors!) You’re the new Artistic Director of Celine showcasing the Maison’s first physical show since February 2023, and the shoes you’re stepping into used to be worn by Hedi Slimane and Phoebe Philo.
No pressure, then.
Courtesy of Celine
If Michael Rider, unveiling his debut for the brand after being appointed to the helm in October last year, was feeling the sartorial strain, he wasn’t showing it. Having made his bones as a Senior Designer at Balenciaga; worked under Philo as Design Director of Celine’s ready-to-wear, and served as Creative Director at Ralph Lauren, the
Spring 2026 show was less about him pulling on his big boy pants and more about deftly knotting the scarf which would epitomize the event. Wrapped around the invitations, and subsequently sported by attendees around ponytails, bags and wrists, the scarf was ubiquitous as giant carré de soie canopy suspended across 16 Rue Vivienne, and peppered throughout the runway looks, boldly marking an ideological standpoint in this marriage of classic American chic straight out of the world of Capote’s Swans and Slim Aarons’ snapshots, with eternal French sophistication.
Indeed, uber-stylist Law Roach perfectly summed up the anticipation, telling CNN: “I want to see this American flair in this Parisian house… I’m so excited to see the newness.”
The likes of Naomi Watts, Kim Taehyung, aka V from BTS, and Rider’s peers, Jonathan Anderson and Raf Simons, looked on as he sent influence, homage, references, and yes, Roach’s longed-for newness down the runway.
The vibe was classic. Not much messed with – why would you? – but plenty that was twisted, French-tucked, and touched up. Lines were clean, silhouettes running the gamut from slim to billowing, and tailoring razor-sharp.
Courtesy of Celine
Courtesy of Celine
Courtesy of Celine
Courtesy of Celine
The 80s were well represented, underscored with touches of scowling romanticism, power suits, white socks and slip-ons, and overt displays of ostentation – the men’s brown, blouson jacket with one arm covered in locks and keys spring to mind. But for every look that veered into Wall Street territory, there was much Withnail and I-esque palate-cleansing demanding, if not more booze, then certainly its fair share of the attention.
Oversized was everywhere, in balloon pants tucked into boots, cardigans secured with giant safety pins, broad-shouldered faux fur, raffia bags, and floor-skimming A-cut dresses very much designed to accommodate the ebb and flow of the body in fabrics that felt heavily luxurious.
Amid the many elements that were pure Rider were the argyle jumpers straight out of his Ralph Lauren era, along with the stacked rings, the boxing boots, the preppiness, the dandy-ism, the refusal to be kow-towed by this most iconic of brands.
Nowhere was this confidence more evident than in the return of one of the House’s most beloved bags: the Celine New Luggage bag, its appearance igniting online debate as fashionistas racing to ID the bag initially believed Rider had re-issued Philo’s beloved Phantom Luggage. Rider’s iteration of the New Luggage adds a new top handle accessory and has been crafted in burgundy, ultra blue, and black. Styled with jeans, bordering-on-statement collars and three-quarter length coats, it’s the uber-preppy autumn weekender for those for whom quiet luxury is a generational way of dressing and most emphatically not a trend.
“Celine stands for quality, for timelessness and for style, ideals that are difficult to catch, and even harder to hold on to, to define, despite more and more talk about them out there,” Rider extolled in the brief show notes. “I’ve always loved the idea of clothing that lives on, that becomes a part of the wearer’s life, that may capture a moment in time but also speaks to years and years of gestures and occasions and change, of the past, the present and the future, of memories, of usefulness and of fantasy, of life really.”
Clothes to live in, work in, shop in, stroll in. Clothes that become part of the ever-evolving wardrobe allowing the wearer to weave in their own references. Clothing that absorb the narrative of those that would wear them and still tell their own stories. As F. Scott Fitzgerald, noted: “The best of America drifts to Paris.” For Rider, c’est vrai.
Courtesy of Celine
Courtesy of Celine
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