Not Sure But,,,,
As Paris Fashion Week Men continues, labels have been affected by the Let’s See What Works” era. Many are going in new directions. What to make of Virgil Abloh at Louis Vuitton? My first impression was the Three Stooges short “Slippery Silks” from 1936. Moe, Larry, and Curly inherit a dress shop. The guys are really furniture makers and carpenters. The Stooges put on a fashion show with models wearing designs resembling furniture pieces. I laughed so hard as a kid watching this on television reruns.. Now, I am not a child.
The June 2019 collection from LV Menswear felt like an Ikea collaboration. Yes, the location was made for modern media, a square in Paris. But going over the looks, HUH? Gender free, skirts, structures on the body, rain boots, was there a sale at a local flea market? I had a feeling of discomfort thinking about wearing many looks. The kite or lamp or table over the shoulder came across as a bit over the top. How one wear this without feeling a bit ridiculous is beyond me.
The Louis Vuitton menswear client is a first stage luxury buyer. He wants to show-off his money with the giant LV logo plastered on everything worn. In the Social Media Age this is acceptable wealth display behavior. The #LV attracts a lot of “likes” on Instagram.
Don’t Hate
Personally, I would not buy a single piece from the runway. But Virgil is savvy, established. The saying goes, “Don’t Hate! Appreciate! One cannot guilt the brand or designer for going after the market. Asia is fueling fashion’s growth. LV is a business eyeing big profits. As fashion decides to push boundaries, reject many social conventions, the balancing act is a fine one. Success, ridicule, losing touch, or irrelavance can pop out of the one hat.
