Givenchy Fall 2023 Men's Ad Campaign Review

Review of Givenchy Fall 2023 Men’s Ad Campaign by Creative Director Matthew M. Williams with model Taeyang

Givenchy’s new Fall 2023 men’s campaign sees creative director Matthew M. Williams continues to step into the role of photographer, this time capturing singer and dancer Taeyang.

In a series of slick and intimate portraits captured in Seoul, the creative director draws out an irrepressibly cool edge from the K-Pop phenomenon, who wears the Fall 2023 collection’s blend of sartorial elegance and hybridized grunge style with confidence and ease.

Taeyang is a friend, and to me his creativity and personal values make him an ideal ambassador for Givenchy. You can feel his presence: he has this easy, modern elegance and an edge – he clearly feels comfortable in the clothes and really personifies the House’s new aesthetic.
– Matthew M. Williams, Givenchy Creative Director

Last season’s men’s campaign – which starred another globally popular musician, Alkaline – was the first that saw Williams take on the additional role of photographer, further putting a personal stamp on the house. It’s still a pretty rare move in the industry; we’ve seen a few creative directors try their hand at the dual approach, but the only one that has made a consistent practice of it is Hedi Slimane at Celine, where his instantly recognizable and incredibly consistent aesthetic has made it a success story.

Williams hasn’t yet reached this level of recognizability and aesthetic distinctness, but he’s on his way. Matching the personal visual touch with a handpicked community of artists as brand ambassadors is also a smart way to further extend this practice. The house is still in the process of finding its feet since his appointment, and a unified visual and creative perspective could be just what it needs.