Quiet luxury is dead. Or at least Johnson Hartig, head designer and creative director of Libertine, seems determined to bury it. The label kicks off its 25th year with a collection that feels steeped in grandeur from a time before I was born, while still balancing a fresh, contemporary spirit.
The Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy era of muted palettes, refined accessories, and minimalist styling has been at the forefront of social media, but Hartig appears more than happy to bury it. The guests seem to agree, bypassing the trends social media influencers have pushed in recent seasons and dressing instead as though they are heading to an eccentric Upper East Side dinner party. There is no beige uniform and no fear of over-accessorizing. Hartig and his guests have little interest in the rigid rules of ’90s minimalist mood boards.
With every season, Libertine continues to remind us that fashion can be whimsical and decorative, all while still feeling luxurious in its own signature way. Its 25th-anniversary showing is no different. Wide-brimmed sun hats cascade down the runway, covered in floral and animal motifs, proving that sun protection can be just as theatrical as it is chic.
Newsboy caps are paired with striped canvas jumpsuits and a tote bag full of baguettes slung over a model’s shoulder, while straw hats of every shape and size are transformed with explosions of rainbow-colored feathers. Marie Antoinette figures dressed in Rococo-style gowns perch atop models’ heads like elegant wedding cake toppers. If the message is extravagance, there could be no better punch line than “let them eat cake.”
Presenting a co-ed collection is no easy feat: designers must create a cohesive visual language while allowing each look to maintain its own distinct identity, rather than simply labeling the collection unisex. Here, Hartig executes that balance with confidence, blurring the traditional boundaries between menswear and womenswear without sacrificing the individuality of either. Masculine and feminine dressing codes are deliberately cast aside, allowing imagination to take precedence over the conventions of gendered dressing.
Sharp tailoring remains at the core of Libertine’s aesthetic, but it never slips into business-casual territory. Oversized blazers pair with midi skirts and coats adorned with exuberant, three-dimensional flowers, turning traditional suiting into tufted, wearable wildflower bouquets.
Even the most conventional suits come with a distinctive twist. Graphic black-and-white stripes with exaggerated proportions make the classic pattern feel almost hypnotic. Pinstripe tailoring appears across both menswear and womenswear. On the womenswear side, a woman walks in a perfectly tailored three-piece black-and-cream pinstripe suit, its sharp lines interrupted by a vine of oranges printed across the front, while “Libertine” is emblazoned boldly along the sleeve. The look is contrasted by a soft pink button-down shirt neatly fitted beneath the blazer and paired with a straw hat.
On the menswear side, a crisp white suit is scattered with delicate botanical motifs, paired with a similar pink striped shirt and a navy-and-silver striped tie, proving that even the most traditionally masculine pieces can be reimagined within this fantastical universe.
A maximalist spirit runs through the show, but Hartig’s excess is never without intention. Canvas workwear seemingly splashed with paint appears as models walk side by side carrying paint buckets, its informality juxtaposed with an avant-garde pink-and-coral feathered coat with a burst of vivid yellow at the center and emerald-green tights below.
Everything that graces the runway is a study in tasteful maximalism, but two looks in particular command attention. The first pairs a voluminous black A-line tulle skirt with sheer, elbow-length black gloves and a sculptural butterfly bustier, almost trompe-l’œil in its construction. Above the bodice, an oversized straw hat extends well beyond the face, its brim partially obscuring the model's eyes. Brightly colored feathers of fuchsia, cobalt blue, and yellow wrap around the crown, transforming a century-old accessory into something unconventional.
If the first look turns the body into a canvas for nature, the second transforms the entire silhouette into a landscape. The look feels like an abstract painting stepping off the canvas and onto the runway. A tailored black peacoat serves as the foundation for a botanical-inspired construction, with meticulously tufted greenery arranged symmetrically along the sleeves and down the sides of the coat. The sculptural topiary-like forms give the silhouette a surreal quality, as wispy green feathers spill from the cuffs and gather along the hem, mimicking the texture of grass blades in the wind. At the base of the coat, miniature garden gates emerge from the feathered foliage. Above it all, an oversized floral headpiece saturated in shades of pink creates a contrast against the dark, earth-tone palette, framing the face with the romanticism of a blooming spring landscape.
These looks are perhaps the clearest expressions of Hartig’s refusal to separate fashion from fantasy. Elsewhere, chaotic, abstract graphics shimmer across the looks, while ornate golden butterflies and floral embellishments creep across otherwise understated black tailoring. All of this paints a picture of the ideal Libertine man and woman this season, someone on their way to an elegant garden party somewhere in the French countryside, unbothered by the trend of restraint.
After 25 years, Libertine proves that fashion is at its best when it trades restraint for imagination.