DESPITE being unable to travel, Nicolas Ghesquière didn’t have to venture far to transport us to a fantasy world.
For Louis Vuitton’s AW21 collection, the French creative director closed Paris Fashion Week with a filmed catwalk show, set amid the Greek, Roman and Etruscan statues housed in the Louvre’s Michelangelo sculpture galleries.
Inspired by the iconography of Ancient Greece, the lineup fused function and elegance into a slick post-lockdown wardrobe, incorporating a brand-new collaboration with renowned Italian art atelier, Fornasetti.
Between slouchy pastel-coloured loungewear and flapper-silhouette dresses, Piero Fornasetti’s surreal interpretations of iconic Greco-Roman artwork were printed onto pillows, plates and candles, adding a refreshing touch of wit to the show’s historical escapism.
The clothes themselves replicated the same kitsch aesthetic; sequin-embellished hoodies came worn over puffy tulle skirts appearing alongside stone-encrusted patterns, metallic gold and silver accents, soft leather tailoring and laser-printed designs of Fornasetti’s own drawings.
As is expected with a Ghesquière collection, this season was as avant-garde as ever. Yet, the clothes felt easy, even relaxed, without sacrificing the maximalist embellishment and prints the designer is known for.
It will be interesting to see how Ghesquière continues to develop this new-found casual attitude, in a House long marked by codes and conceptualism.
by Joshua Hendren