Hot Air Balloon, Virgil Abloh and the sublte, masculine side of Louis Vuitton

 

Hot Air Balloon: The new Louis Vuitton Men’s Artistic Director made a splash in a hugely successful debut, paired with the luxury house’s first collection of perfumes for men.

Louis Vuitton Men’s show is always highly anticipated among Paris Fashion Week’s key events. This time it was more than ever, with the arrival of new Men’s Artistic Director, Virgil Abloh. Celebrating diversity, the new Louis Vuitton Men’s Artistic Director, chose a rainbow-hued catwalk for his debut collection in the gardens of the Palais Royal in Paris, France. With a resolutely luxe and streetwear first collection, the new Louis Vuitton Men’s Artistic Director made a splash in a hugely successful debut. Among the personalities were present: Rihanna, Chadwick Boseman, Jing Boran, Kim Kardashian, Kanye West, Naomi Campbell, Bella Hadid, Rita Ora, Takanori Iwata, Swae Lee, Liu Haoran,Kylie Jenner, Dan Carter…

For Virgil Abloh’s first runway show for Louis Vuitton, the gardens of the Palais Royal were decked out in splendid colors. Beginning with the opening looks in layers of white, the line-up continued as a representation of light refracted through a prism – a spectrum not just of colour but also design possibilities.

“The luxury Maison’s new Artistic Director for men’s collections unveiled his Spring-Summer 2019 looks to enthusiastic guests, including celebrities such as Kanye West, Kim Kardashian, ASAP Rocky, Rihanna and his predecessor Kim Jones, now Artistic Director of Dior Homme. Numerous Louis Vuitton employees were among those attending the show, as well as specially invited fashion and design students, ” said LVMH luxury group.

Transparent shirts were joined by XXL coats and Louis Vuitton classics, such as the iconic Keepall bag, reimagined and twisted.

As models from around the world walked the runway in LV Skate trainer boots, formal derbies studded with LV hardware, and vintage LV Runner trainers, they evoked Abloh’s ideal of the Yellow Brick Road, Dorothy’s path of discovery and otherworldly escape. Scenes from the film appear integrated into embroidered knitwear and printed outwear, in addition to the final silver leather poncho with commemorative Louis Vuitton and Wizard of Oz beaded patches.

Simultaneously, Louis Vuitton unveiled the first collection of perfumes for men. Having devoted his first creations to women, the Master Perfumer Jacques Cavallier Belletrud now takes a different path.

This time, he proposes a journey dedicated to men, delving into the heart of their instincts for freedom and their pioneering sensibility. Five exceptional fragrances pay homage to the adventurer on a quest for self-revelation. Five singular perfumes “capture breathtaking discoveries and evoke a masculine energy right on the skin’s surface, without clichés or caricatures.”

LOUIS VUITTON ACCESSORIES POP-UP OPENS IN SELFRIDGES LONDON

Louis Vuitton unveiled a new pop-up concept theme of Hot Air Balloon, capturing the world of Women’s Accessories. The Pop-up opens from June 20th until July 20th 2018 at Selfridges London. The Pop-up celebrates Louis Vuitton’s Prefall 2018 accessories range, including textiles, jewellery, sunglasses, belts, and iconic small leather goods with signature Monogram and LV logo detailing.

We discovered a special textiles collection with a colourful and playful interpretation on stylish prints, taking inspiration from board games within the Louis Vuitton archives to artistic collages using the House’s iconic design features.