Fashion news of the week: Raf Simons and Alessandro Michele say farewell

Kicking off the week on a solemn note was fashion’s favourite outsider Raf Simons, who announced the closure of his eponymous label after 27 solid years of service and influence. Take a look at our feature, where we spoke to some of his fans including David Owen, founder of IDEA Books, Hannah Tindle, Fashion Features Director of ES Magazine, and our very own Digital Director and hardcore Rafaelite Brooke McCord.

It’s been a week of fashion bye bye’s, with Alessandro Michele announcing his departure as creative director at Gucci just days after Raf Simons confirmed the closure of his label. Over seven years, the Italian designer reworked the house’s codes, bringing in a vision of romance, fantastical dress-up and feather boas. Among the many highlights, Michele shut down the whole of Hollywood Boulevard for Gucci’s Love Parade show in 2021, sent model’s decapitated heads down the runway (kind of) for AW18 and collaborated with Palace on one of the best (and most expensive) collabs of the year. Arrivederci, Alessandro!

The Lethaby Gallery will be opening its doors to Central Saint Martins’ MA Fashion Communication students, exhibiting the graduating works of its emerging photographers, filmmakers, journos and critical thinkers. It revolves around four major themes which the students have responded to: ​“Embodying Experience”, ​“Representing Communities”, ​“Talking Futures” and ​“Confronting Fashion”. Expect attitude, style and a whole lotta talent.

MAFC opens on 29^th November at the Lethaby Gallery, King’s Cross. Free admission

Seems like it was only last week when Celine presented a new collection, Oh, hang on – it was only last week. And yet, the house is back on 8^th December with its AW23 collection, in a show titled Celine at The Wiltern, held in Los Angeles’ 12-story theatre and Art Deco landmark, The Wiltern. For now, Celine is keeping schtum on major details of the show, but you can bet your bottom dollar it’ll be a banger.

Fresh from the SS23 women’s pre-collection, Alexander McQueen has launched The Slash bag, a new addition with some classic McQueenisms. Influenced by the British house’s history of slashed tailoring, the leather features sharp cuts down the front, as well as bringing back the classic knuckle hardware and skull motif. In an accompanying campaign directed by Glenn Luchford, model Kaia Gerber gets up close and personal with some strange AI figures. Far out.

UGG is no stranger to a link-up, having partnered with Y/​Project, KNWLS and Telfar on some killer collabs over the years. Now, it’s the turn of Hood by Air’s Shayne Oliver, who, unsurprisingly, has thrown conventionality out of the window. ​“I like the idea of playing with tradition and pushing it to extreme levels and UGG is a huge part of the language that I’m extremely pleased with pursuing,” the New York designer says. Oliver’s take on the winter booties is full-on armour, complete with a toe cover, leather upper and foam footbed that looks brilliantly strange and feels unexpected – not so dissimilar to his years heading up one of the most innovative and forward-facing fashion brand.