Mel Usine, fall 2026 ready-to-wear
Photo: Bettina Pittaluga / Courtesy of Mel UsineWith his sophomore collection Stephen Biga, who named his brand after a woman wronged, showed how right—and timely—is his penchant for romance.
This fledgling brand takes its name from a mythic figure, Melusine, who Biga encountered at the Met. Legend has it that this water nymph married a nobleman who was unaware of her true identity, and whom she had vow that he would never watch her bathe. When he broke his promise, she became a dragon and disappeared. Biga summoned another chimerical creature as muse when he chose the Musée de Cluny’s unicorn tapestry as his starting point for fall. In particular, he was drawn to the sixth panel, “À mon seul désir,” explaining that he was attracted by what he characterized as its theme of “self-possessed femininity; the body is present but not explained.” That didn’t stop Biga from showing see-through pieces, but overall the collection was quite covered-up. The designer also expanded on ideas he introduced last season by, for example, adding sleeves or playing with different fabric combinations.
