SHOWnews: Your S/S 25 Campaign Review

McQueen Campaign Rating: 6.5/10

In 2017 Harper’s Bazaar photographed model Sam Rollinson (a big favourite) on a pastoral Scottish hilltop for their cover. She wore McQueen by Sarah Burton. Go look that image up instead. Earnest, mid (at best), models posing like a fashion-for-basics course shot by Glen Luchford do not measure up to his electrifying campaign stories for Gucci by Alessandro Michele.

Silver lining: Luchford and creative director Christopher Simmonds save McQueen’s S/S 25 campaign with their patented dreamy film work. This explains the 6.5 score. It is a solid campaign film. Soundtracked by an alt-chillwave track from Heartworms’ 2023 EP, their film captures everything McQueen creative director Séan McGirr rambled about to smudge his own attraction to banshees onto McQueen house lore (ignore that too). Just watch the film. Sarah Caballero (another big fave) haunts, emotes and kinda soars like a tough heroine releasing her tailored gang to wreak havoc across Welsh shores.

Prada Campaign Rating: 7.5/10

Nice when the most Prada show since you-know-who came aboard keeps the same energy from its S/S 25 runway show to its campaign endpoint. Mrs. P did away with trademark concepts, canned styles and societal ripostes to engage with new algorithms shifting our whims at a fever pitch. And it worked! Carey Mulligan and Steven Meisel took Mrs. P’s (we try to ignore you-know-who) glitchy, twitchy, gender be damned approach to a narrative of female-centred multiplicity. While the gender conversation across the runway kinda vanished (really miss wearing Prada womens), we did get a clever portrayal of prefabricated women designed by Prada differences. It’s all very Cindy Sherman and possibly as close to real Prada as if her A/W 20 collection was last season. Good stuff.

Carhartt WIP Campaign Rating: 3.0/10

Carhartt WIP’s latest campaign recalls that Sex And The City Season 4 episode ‘The Good Fight.’ Remember when Carrie let Aidan have it over Roberto Cavalli A/W 99, the Rogaine and the speed stick? God what an epic episode. Thinking of her ‘couldn’t help but wonder’ moment, this Carhartt WIP campaign makes you wonder ‘What are we fighting for?’ A ‘kaleidoscopic view of the season’ (their words not mine!) lacks depth or desire. It is barely one dimensional. Are we watching a bad Wolfgang Tillmans pantomime? When work framed in colourful contrasts with approachable-looking people in unmemorable-looking clothes is a seasonal campaign suggestion, you tend to wonder what Carrie Bradshaw did. Are we supposed to want any of this stuff? What’s it all for, Carhartt WIP? It’s such a shame since Carhartt WIP A/W 24 campaign was a hard 8/10.

Stone Island Campaign Rating: 7/10

Hard to argue against Stone Island’s ‘COMMUNITY AS A FORM OF RESEARCH’ project. While another David Sims campaign credit is wearisome, his hypnotic stranglehold on fashion commissions makes good sense here. Film director Spike Lee, musicians John Glacier and Giggs, footballer and entrepreneur, Hidetoshi Nakata (one of the most stylish men this century) give coherency to Stone Island’s passionate brand of ‘product design, material research and innovation.’ A thoroughly researched, interconnected group gets great questions from the Serpentine Gallery’s artistic director Hans Ulrich Obrist (one of the most incisive men this century) that relate to a dynamic sense of self Stone Island wearers are known to have. They fit right into Stone Island’s templated white backgrounds and DIN Text realness. Plus variant subcultural adjacent ties each have in their respective industries connect to Stone Island history, passion and global IYKYK attitude.

Ferragamo Campaign Rating: 5/10

Creative director Maximilian Davis reunites with stylist Lotta Volkova and Juergen Teller for his new Ferragamo campaign, shifting from spiritual home Florence last season and now Tuscany. Just like last season Teller uses location to his advantage, placing Liu Wen and Claudia Campana in lively, playful Villa Mangiacane.

Model close-ups frame bodies, plus heavy-handed Ferragamo shoes and bags, in seemingly easy postures against inoffensive frescoes. The emphasis on product placement removes last season’s effortlessness — and potential for real fun — within the backdrop. This questions why commission Teller with Volokva anyways.

The campaign visual results obscure Davis’ compelling S/S 25 ballet clothes narrative in favour of excess baggage, shaky loafers and kitten heels that do not convince. It is a missed opportunity suggesting the viewer should maybe smile weakly, say ‘oh nice’ and move on to something really expressive, which this is not.

Jimmy Choo Campaign Rating: 8.5/10

In a stark reversal of the McQueen campaign, Jimmy Choo and Chloë Sevigny images and accompanying fashion film trounce the competition. Nothing comes close to Chloë except Chloé (more on Chloé later). Sevigny, photographer Ezra Petronio and legendary stylist Jane How collaborations trace back to style bible Self Service magazine (which Petronio founded) issue No. 2, when she was shot by Mark Borthwick. Those images were reissued twice by Petronio in 2019 and 2022…for collectors’ issues of the best fashion campaigns since 1994. See why this Jimmy Choo collaboration works?!?! It is in their blood to reset how glamour tantalises with desire. We are witnessing editorial taste at a high level.

As Chloë Sevigny explains in the Jimmy Choo film:

‘Glamour is the line between effortless and poised. Sophisticated and Chaotic. It is absolutely worth any amount of effort of course.’

Sevigny enhances any scene she occupies with a primal understanding of how clothes work. Which is likely why you never see her in socks and slides. Glamour is also a standard. Jimmy Choo images are her beneficiary this season. Thank you Chloë. Thank you Ezra. Thank you Jane. This is how a real fashion campaign should look.

Versace Campaign Rating: 5.0/10

Something is missing with our Versace woman. She’s become quite toothless. How can a season-referencing collection originally catwalking Tasha Tillberg, Amy Wesson and Kirsten Owen opposite Amber Valetta, Shalom Harlow and Guinevere Van Seenus turn out blandly? This is the VERSACE woman for goodness sake! Linda, Nadja, Naomi and McMenamy shot by Avedon! Stella Tennant with Joe McKenna and Bruce Weber! Where has our Versace woman gone?

Is Loli Bahaia raising the roof behind that couch?

Photographers Mert & Marcus attempt to draw a vibrant spirit from Versus 1997 prints and Mona Tougaard for some semblance of bold individuality. Nothing electrifies. Go back to their S/S 13 men's with Kate and Daria or their S/S 14 campaign with Gaga instead. Their Versace back to the future approach worked. This time, you won’t look twice. Can you believe even thinking such a thing about the Versace woman?

Isabel Marant Campaign Rating: 6.0/10

Multiple white backgrounds this season make grading these campaigns an extreme exercise. It becomes yes versus no, pass versus fail. Due to the atmosphere timeless Isabel Marant ambassador Kate Moss creates, new campaign images engender a warm feeling of that eternal Marant girl wearing her boyfriend’s clothes better than he ever could.

Styled in Paris by another stylish legend, Emmanuelle Alt, Moss and Ateez’ Seonghwa try to make chic happen. The white backgrounds do them no favours. You kinda wish Emmanuelle Alt was the campaign star. These effortlessly chic, soft motorcycle, tomboy attitudes are hers anyway. Especially with this campaign being shot in Paris. Alt with Marant would likely occupy these lily white backgrounds with a ‘bohemian allure’ that is synthetic in this present campaign moment.

Songzio Campaign Rating: 7/10

Avant-narrative fashion label Songzio returns with another winning campaign that once again features a photographer more fashion companies should commission: avant-visual expert (and 2023 LVMH Prize finalist) Cho Gi-Seok. Their third installation titled ‘Bright Star,’ tells the story of young boys searching for the brightest star in the constellation.

This campaign is its own North Star — feelings and fantasies contained inside a coherent visual conversation. Some images refer back to the embellished headshot portraiture Gi-Seok used in work for Billie Eilish Louis Vuitton and Kali Uchis. Others are a panoramic recall to last season’s night thieves in torment. Songzio and Gi-Seok embellish forms and atmosphere to layer a smackdown across conventional campaign images. Which is why theirs are another top boy this season.

Honourable Mention: Chloé Summer 2025 Campaign Score - 8.5/10