Virgil Abloh’s legacy at Louis Vuitton’s Paris Fashion Week menswear show: the bold spring/summer 2023 collection is the fashion house’s first not created by the late designer
A model presents a creation during the Louis Vuitton menswear spring/summer 2023 show, as part of Paris Fashion Week, in Paris, on June 23. Photo: AFP
He may have died last November, but Virgil Abloh lived on at Paris Fashion Week on Thursday, June 23, in a high-energy runway spectacular for Louis Vuitton menswear. A black marching band gave a rousing performance on a surreal yellow brick road installation inside the Louvre, while rapper Kendrick Lamar performed a live ode to the American fashion star who was Vuitton’s menswear designer from 2018 until his death.
The FAMU’s Incomparable Marching “100” band perform during the spring/summer 2023 collection show by Louis Vuitton fashion house during Men’s Fashion Week in Paris, France, on June 23. Photo: Reuters
Models carry a rainbow flag along a “yellow brick road” during the Louis Vuitton menswear spring/summer 2023 show, as part of Paris Fashion Week, in Paris, on June 23. Photo: AFP
Models wearing a suit coat paired with shorts, and a gender-bending ruffled skirt, as part of the Louis Vuitton men’s spring/summer 2023 collection presented in Paris, France, on June 23. Photo: AP Photo
“Long live Virgil … How many miles away?” went the live rap by Lamar at the stiflingly hot Vuitton show. The yellow road set that snaked around the Louvre’s oldest courtyard recalled the spirit of the Wizard of Oz and the childhood obsessions common in Abloh’s designs – as did a colourfully dressed marching band and dancing troupe, including several Florida A&M University band members, that appeared noisily at the show’s beginning and end.
A model showing off a carnival of colour as part of the Louis Vuitton men’s spring/summer 2023 collection presented in Paris, France, on June 23. Photo: AP Photo
Nostalgic touches evoking childhood were present at Louis Vuitton’s menswear spring/Summer 2023 show, as part of Paris Fashion Week, in Paris, on June 23, such as the colourful beads and decorations seen here. Photo: AFP
This spring/summer show was the first presented since Abloh’s death that he had not designed ( a previous posthumous one was based on his own creations). On Thursday, it was instead a collection conceived entirely by the Vuitton studio in his spirit. This rare continuation at Vuitton of a former designer’s aesthetic is a strong sign of the level of influence the man drew.
It’s a remarkable feat for a studio to emulate a former designer’s styles – with originality.
Yellow on yellow at Louis Vuitton’s menswear spring/summer 2023 show, as part of Paris Fashion Week, in Paris, on June 23. Photo: AFP
This was the case at Thursday’s display: from shirt hems quirkily cut in zigzag patterns, to 3D paper plane appliqués on suits and otherworldly, elongated silhouettes.
Close-up of a suitcase-like bag at the Louis Vuitton men’s spring/summer 2023 collection presented in Paris, France, on June 23. Photo: AP Photo
A model rocks an outfit with a statement-making floral motif at Louis Vuitton’s menswear spring/summer 2023 show, as part of Paris Fashion Week, in Paris, on June 23. Photo: AFP
An all-white look at Louis Vuitton’s menswear spring/summer 2023 show, as part of Paris Fashion Week, in Paris, on June 23. Photo: AFP
A finely tailored jacket with trompe l’oeil prints provided one of the many touches of old-school luxury. Such moments in this collection seemed even to surpass Abloh’s own runway designs.
Another floral print look at Louis Vuitton’s menswear spring/summer 2023 show, as part of Paris Fashion Week, in Paris, on June 23. Photo: AFP
Louis Vuitton did not shy away from bold aesthetics for its menswear spring/summer 2023 show, as part of Paris Fashion Week, in Paris, on June 23. Photo: AFP
They toed a careful line between the playful styles associated with the house since 2018 and the fine luxury tailoring seen during the tenure of predecessor Kim Jones.
The display’s strength was owed to its many feats of design. One case in point was the waist on a black double-breasted jacket that had been pulled in to resemble a V on its side. Its very silhouette evoked the house monogram.
A colourful knit look featuring the fashion house’s monogram at Louis Vuitton’s menswear spring/summer 2023 show, as part of Paris Fashion Week, in Paris, on June 23. Photo: AFP
Louis Vuitton’s design studio just bucked the trend of too many cooks spoiling the broth.
Rapper Kendrick Lamar and Florida A&M University band members performed as models showed off bold creations along a ‘yellow brick road’ à la The Wizard of Oz
Celebrities such as Justin Timberlake, Naomi Campbell and Jessica Biel looked on at the colourful, quickly collection with a variety of prints and childlike elements
