FASHION

Steven Meisel Steps Out From Behind the Camera to Design a Collection for Zara

by Carolyn Twersky
Updated: 
Originally Published: 

Steven Meisel Zara Collab
Photograph by Steven Meisel

After years of shooting campaigns for the multinational retail chain, Zara, Steven Meisel is stepping out from behind the camera and lending his eye to design. The photographer has partnered with the fast-fashion brand to create a collection of men and women’s clothing and accessories that show off a new application of his renowned aesthetic.

The line, which ranges is price $28 to $439, features over 50 products, rendered mostly in leather, denim, and faux fur and inspired in part by Meisel’s own personal style. Within the collection, one will find the classics—jeans, hoodies, overcoats, parkas, bandannas—pieces that, with their Americana bend, feel autobiographical and native to Meisel, and especially at home in his photographs. Those basics are balanced out by more eccentric pieces, like a croc-printed coat or a lace-up leather skirt clearly influenced by the ’60s, a favorite decade of the designer.

Photograph by Steven Meisel

In many ways, the line seems like a walk down Meisel’s memory lane. The campaign features some of his favorite models of the past few decades (Linda Evangelista and Amber Valletta among them), while the pieces on offer could easily find a place in his editorials from the ’90s and early ’00s. The plaid skirts and oversized denim invoke another era, while graphic t-shirts featuring Meisel’s own drawings harken back to his days as a fashion illustrator.

The collection, titled Steven Meisel New York, is a nod to his favorite eras, his hometown, and his longtime collaborators. In addition to Evangelista—his model-muse and the subject of his new book from Phaidon—and Valletta, Liya Kebede, Irina Shayk, Gigi Hadid, Kaia Gerber, Penelope Tree, Eva Herzigova, and Alton Mason also star in the campaign. Additionally, the photographer tapped his go-to creative partners, (stylist Karl Templer, makeup artist Pat McGrath, and hairstylist Guido Palau) to help bring the images to life.

Photograph by Steven Meisel

The collection will be available at a special Steven Meisel New York pop-up at 33 Howard Street September 9-13 and at Dover Street Market London September 15-17. Starting September 18, you can shop the collection at Zara.com.

For those in New York for Fashion Week, Linda Evangelista herself will be at the Zara Steven Meisel New York store at the 33 Howard Street location signing copies of their new book Linda Evangelista Photographed by Steven Meisel on Saturday September 9, 11am-1pm.

This article was originally published on