Balenciaga launches its High Summer 2025 campaign with a series of portraits and videos by photographer Roe Ethridge that riff on the visual language of luxury hotel advertisements. Staged against artificial backdrops of glistening ocean views, hazy sunsets, and manicured poolside escapes, the campaign leans into glossy travel fantasy, subtly warped through Balenciaga’s signature irony and stylized distance.
The visuals combine still-life imagery and model portraits with computer-generated animations that bring the static world to life. Ethridge’s approach toys with nostalgia and artificiality, echoing the hyperreal aesthetic of mid-2000s resort marketing. Taglines used throughout mimic the tone of holiday brochures, but with a knowing wink, placing the collection in an imagined, curated version of escapism.
Models Sonja, Estelle, Claudia, Liz, Simon, and Bai wear pieces from the High Summer line: fluid jersey dresses, bikinis detailed with BB buckle hardware or Loop Sports Icon branding, and a standout velvet bustier swimsuit with a sculpted sweetheart neckline. Select silhouettes from the Summer and upcoming Fall 2025 collections are also incorporated into the campaign’s styling, including the voluminous Bathrobe Stola, Oversized Boxy Coat, Round Harrington Jacket, and Oversized Short Sleeve Shirt. Footwear includes calfskin sandals from the brand’s collaboration with Scholl.
The accessory selection introduces several new styles. The Le City Basket, rendered in woven raffia and lambskin, brings a seasonal twist to one of the house’s most recognizable bags. Other debuts include the Carrie Bowling Bag in grained calfskin and the Le City Bag in khaki canvas. A still-life vignette also unveils a new Le City iteration in washed denim, set alongside key items like the Biarritz Tote in black calfskin and the Ski Mask Goggles.
The campaign builds a full atmosphere, complete with downloadable mobile wallpapers available on balenciaga.com, extending the fantasy beyond the screen. By remixing resort ad aesthetics with elevated product photography and stylized synthetic environments, Balenciaga offers a surreal version of vacation luxury, one framed in digital nostalgia and cinematic polish.
