In November 2022, following the announcement that the Tom Ford fashion house had passed to the Estée Lauder group for 2.8 billion dollars (with the clothing licensed to the Zegna Group), it was said that the founder, Tom Ford, would remain creative director of the brand certainly until the end of 2023. Thus the “final collection” published in recent days by the creative Texan on his official Instagram account sounds a bit like a swan song. And if we still don’t know if Ford will officially leave the house at the end of the year (or even leave fashion, perhaps to devote himself to one of his many passions or to his son), this final collection sounds like a greatest hits: Tom Ford has “ rummaged” in his archives and chose to re-edit some of his favorite looks from the last 13 years.
To tell the story of the collection, the creative has chosen a medium that is very dear to him: the video. Award-winning director (he won, among others, the Silver Lion for Nocturnal Animals), Tom Ford has entrusted the direction of this short film to photographer Steven Klein. The protagonist, however, is himself. Along with some of the supermodels who have worn his creations over the years: Amber Valletta, Karen Elson, Caroline Trentini, Joan Smalls and Karlie Kross. Dressed in black (by Carine Roitfeld, who is entrusted with the styling), the supermodels appear in a sort of showcase-case in front of which Tom Ford observes them: dressed in black, they cry, scream and let themselves go into a song of despair. Or they dance, wrapped up in sequined mini-dresses. Or again, they parade. He directs the dance as if he were an orchestra conductor; he watches her cries, impassive. Then he goes on and on. Towards new shop windows – the setting is a long dark gallery, lit only by the shop windows with the models, always dressed differently – and, perhaps, new shores.