Louis Vuitton appoints Pharrell Williams menswear creative director
Fifteen months after the death of Virgil Abloh, Louis Vuitton has finally found its male creative director. It is the artist Pharrell Williams who was chosen to imagine the future of men's fashion within the French label.
Louis Vuitton has a new creative director, and not least. The flagship of the LVMH group has chosen Pharrell Williams to imagine the brand's men's collections. An appointment that comes fifteen months after the death of Virgil Abloh , previous designer to hold this position.
A true jack of all trades, Pharrell Williams, musician, entrepreneur, founder of the brands Billionaire Boys Club (with Nigo, current artistic director of Kenzo, another brand of the LVMH group) and Ice Cream, already has a history with Louis Vuitton. The artist has worked twice with the brand to create pop sunglasses and jewelry in the 2000s.' I am happy to see Pharrell returning to the house, after our collaborations in 2004 and 2008 for Louis Vuitton, as the new men's creative director. His creative vision beyond fashion will undoubtedly lead Louis Vuitton to a very exciting new chapter. ', said Peter Beccari, Chairman and CEO of Louis Vuitton since February 2023.
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Pharrell Williams' first collection for the French house will be unveiled at the Spring-Summer 2024 Men's Fashion Week in Paris next June, exactly five years after Virgil Abloh's inaugural show for Louis Vuitton. By choosing Pharrell Williams, LVMH seems to have decided to continue its foray into the world of streetwear . The American artist, who rose to fame with The Neptunes , a music production entity, and N.E.R.D, a hip-hop duo group with Chad Hugo, used to parade their designer sneakers, loose denims, colorful bermudas and fitted shirts in the front row of parades . Very close to home Chanel , Pharrell Williams even collaborated with the brand in March 2019. For Louis Vuitton, we can expect arty collections, unexpected collaborations, colorful creations and special attention paid to accessories. A few more months of patience...
How Louis Vuitton paid tribute to Virgil Abloh?
The disappearance of Virgil Abloh on November 28, 2021 took everyone by surprise. The man who had been the artistic director of Louis Vuitton's men's collections since 2018, succumbed to cancer that he had been fighting privately since 2019.
It was through a sober message that Louis Vuitton confirmed the death of Virgil Abloh, sending its condolences to the designer's family. A tribute parade was then presented in Miami on the 30 November 2021. It was actually a show long-planned, thought as a spin-off of the spring-summer 2022 collection, unveiled in June 2021 in Paris. Unique silhouettes, drones, hot air balloon, fireworks and a statue of Virgil Abloh made this event very special.
What is the history of Louis Vuitton?
Behind Louis Vuitton hides a young man, who at 16 arrives in Paris to become a trunk maker. Originally from the Jura where he was born in 1821 in Anchay, Louis Vuitton decides at 13 years old to cross France on foot from his native province to integrate the apprenticeship of a certain Mr. Marshal in 1837. That same year, the steam train, whose invention dates back to the beginning of the century, is equipped in France with a very first line reserved for passengers , rallying Paris to Saint-Germain-en-Laye. An advance that considerably facilitates travel and good news for trunk makers, since travelers need more than ever solid luggage, trunks and suitcases to protect their belongings during their excursions. Actually, the history of Louis Vuitton is intrinsically linked to travel , which the house takes pleasure in highlighting with, in particular, in 2017, a traveling exhibition on this theme.
In 1854, Louis Vuitton inaugurated are premier atelier , a short distance from the Place Vendôme , at 4, rue Neuve-des-Capucines where he became friends with Charles Frederick Worth , who is credited with creating the high fashion . Then, it is in Asnières that the craftsman settles down with twenty employees. He had the idea of inventing a trunk in a waterproof coated material, Gris Trianon canvas, with a rectangular and flat shape, easy to stack. It is a real success, which his function as trunk maker-packer for the Empress Eugénie surely inspired him.
With stores opening abroad (London, New York, California) as early as 1885, Louis Vuitton counterfeits begin to be legion. The craftsman then imagines with his son Georges Vuitton a beige and brown pattern, the Checkerboard since become famous. Presented during the same Universal Exhibition as the Eiffel Tower, in 1889, it is one of the house's successes. In 1892, Louis Vuitton died and Georges succeeded him at the head of the flourishing family business. Four years later, the heir introduces a new print, the famous Monogram Louis Vuitton , composed of flowers with four petals, the same ones that were on the earthenware tiles of the family kitchen. Mixed with the initials LV, in homage to his father, the motif becomes le logo Louis Vuitton . Once again, a success now a signature of the house, which is available over and over again on clothes, handbags or shoes and sometimes reinvents itself, as with the new Monogram called 'Since 1854'.
What makes Louis Vuitton creations so special?
Louis Vuitton is one of the jewels of French luxury. The LVMH group , to which the brand belongs, has thus achieved gross sales of 44.6 billion euros in 2020. If the company's performance is impressive, it is because Louis Vuitton (and the other brands of the group, from Dior to Celine) demonstrate a very specific know-how . With twelve leather workshops in France, leather from Italy and carefully selected materials, the house can be proud to be one of the most prestigious in the world. Its leather goods collections are thus either made in France , either made in Spain or the United States. Ready-to-wear, shoes and sunglasses are made in France and Italy. The watches are all designed in Switzerland, while the jewelry is created in France, Italy and Switzerland. Moreover, each year, Louis Vuitton organizes its Special days during which the general public is invited to discover the universe of the house in the workshops located in Asnières-sur-Seine, but also in Sainte-Florence in Vendée, in Fiesso d'Artico in Italy or even at La Fabrique du Temps in Geneva.
What are Louis Vuitton's must-have it bags?
The real success of the brand is undoubtedly its line of leather goods . The Louis Vuitton handbag collection includes the bowling bag among its cult models Speedy , which is passed down from generation to generation, the bag Neverfull or the very classic Soul , with an elegant rounded shape. With eight lines of iconic it bags and new models introduced each season, the choice is almost endless. And to pay homage to its founder, in 2014 the house reinvented its historic trunk in handbag format. Her name is... the little trunk , obviously !
More recently, the brand launched a new line of eco-designed handbags and padded. baptized 'Pillow' , this collection is inspired by the design of the Pillow Boot, this shoe-slipper imagined in October 2020 by Nicolas Ghesquiere who had caused so much talk thanks to his down jacket airs. A pillow-style backpack, a shopping bag Onthego , an unreleased version of Speedy and an Multi Pouch Accessories are the stars of this line as stylish as it is comfortable. Each piece uses the Econyl® , a material made of 100% recycled nylon fibers, on its entire exterior, lining, handles and backpack straps.
When did Louis Vuitton start ready-to-wear?
For the brand to be at the ready to wear , we have to wait until 1996. Louis Vuitton has for some years been the property of Bernard Arnault via the LVMH group, in which he has been a shareholder since 1987 and majority shareholder since 1990. The businessman then decided to call on a fashionable young designer, an American named Marc Jacobs . Appointed designer of Louis Vuitton, he shakes up the codes, inviting the artists of the moment to revisit the monogram canvas while injecting a good dose of grunge, cool and pop culture into the pieces signed LV.
In 2013, Marc Jacobs presented his latest collection for Louis Vuitton in Paris. French Nicolas Ghesquiere takes over and has since composed a retro-futuristic score for the house. The shows take place during Paris Fashion Week, most often at Louvre , even if for spring-summer 2021, the brand presented its collection at the Samaritan , department store owned by LVMH, still under construction. For the man it is Virgil Abloh , the designer sensation of recent years, who was named in 2018 to succeed Kim Jones . The designer knew well the brand's then CEO, Michael Burke , whom he had met when he was interning in Rome at Fendi alongside Kanye West. On the program until its disappearance on November 28, 2021: fashion in the colors of the rainbow and pieces that have all become cult on social networks, like its baskets Louis Vuitton. To succeed him, musician Pharrell Williams was appointed on February 14, 2023.
What are Louis Vuitton's cult collaborations?
The brand is used to inviting personalities for the time of collaborations event. The most famous of them? In 2003, the Japanese artist Takashi Murakami was invited to affix his colorful universe to the house's handbags. The partnership is a success and the multicolored Monogram it bags are snapping up. Over the years, Louis Vuitton has repeated the experience: Jeff Koons, Yayoi Kusama, Stephen Sprouse or even Urs Fischer have used the famous add ear of the French label. The brands also lend themselves to the game of collaboration with Louis Vuitton. In 2017, Kim Jones, then artistic director of the men's collections, offered the label Supreme to revisit the classics of the house. The creations are snapped up and then resold with attractive capital gains on the internet.
Where to buy LV branded parts?
Since the beginnings of the brand, Louis Vuitton has faced numerous counterfeits. handbag imitations, belts, pouches, shoes and bags Louis Vuitton runs the streets. To avoid buying at a gold price a fake Louis Vuitton bag , it is advisable to go to the store. The house, present on five continents with its own boutiques, has Paris addresses on Place Vendôme, on the Champs-Elysees , avenue Montaigne or in Saint-Germain-des-Prés. In the capital, Louis Vuitton is also present in department stores, such as Galeries Lafayette , the Cheap Left Bank , the Spring Haussmann and The Samaritan. And for travellers, Louis Vuitton has settled in the areas duty free of different airports : To Paris-Charles de Gaulle , but also in South Korea, the United Kingdom or Singapore. Another possibility: buy the latest Louis Vuitton collections on the Internet. The brand launched its eshop in 2005 in France and has 39 different versions of its merchant site. To find vintage pearls signed Louis Vuitton, it is better to favor trusted second-hand sites and stores such as Monogram, CollectorSquare or Vestiaire Collective which has a authentication of professionals, able to identify a real one from a fake Louis Vuitton bag at a glance.
What is the Louis Vuitton Foundation?
In addition to fashion, Louis Vuitton distinguished itself in the artistic field. Bernard Arnault inaugurated a space dedicated to the creation, Louis Vuitton Foundation , in October 2014. The imposing building, designed by the architect Frank Gehry , is located on the edge of the Bois de Boulogne in the 16th th Parisian district. The museum's own collections and thematic temporary exhibitions are presented there alternately.
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In addition, Louis Vuitton has been producing very chic since 1998 tourist guides , THE City Guide , for around thirty cities such as London, Paris, Dubai, Lisbon and even Moscow. An invitation to travel, once again.
Source journaldesfemmes.fr
