For Nicolas Ghesquière, the energy of Chinese youth was palpable, so highlighting local creativity for his first show in China since COVID-19 (and Louis Vuitton's first show under the Voyager Show format) was a no-brainer.
During a personal trip to Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu last November, Ghesquière, artistic director of Vuitton's women's collections since 2013, was introduced to the works of Sun Yitian, a Beijing-based artist known for her enlarged animal paintings.
Inspired by Sun's work exploring mass production (“Made in China”) and artistic value, as well as his personal story of growing up in Wenzhou, a manufacturing hub, he decided to team up with Sun and bring his most famous paintings to the catwalk. .
Sun's toy animal series, which included a pink rabbit, yellow duck, spotted dog, leopard, swan and more, ended up in more than 90 products in the collection, ranging from bags to ready-to-wear. porter and accessories.
Sun's version of Zootopia was also unleashed on the streets of Shanghai.
Sun Yitian's work is seen wrapped around the facade of Shanghai's K11 art mall.
Courtesy
In the days leading up to the show, Sun's inflated toy animals, in some ways a youthful interpretation of Jeff Koons' enlarged figures, covered the facade of the Shanghai K11 Art Mall, appeared in the picturesque city center, landed on billboards iconic advertisements and practically floated across the cityscape at the same time, perhaps a move even Koons would envy.
Similarly, Ghesquière chose Chu Wong, a next-generation Chinese supermodel, to share the stage with him, creating a remix of her single “Bad Kiss N Dreams” for the show, produced in collaboration with Ghesquière's long-time collaborator Woodkid Music. a long time.
Chu's restless vocals and Woodkid's techno kicks not only intensified the drama of the garments, but reverberated throughout the all-white concrete structure that houses the Long Museum, the location Ghesquière selected for the show. Vuitton didn't change the place much, just adding simple blocks of white seats and tunnel lights, letting the industrial building speak for itself.
“I loved the contrast of the incredibly futuristic architecture, the historic waters and the old concrete silo in front of the museum,” Ghesquière said.
A look at Louis Vuitton's first Voyager Show in Shanghai.
Yan Yufeng/World Water Day
The collection, which began with simple pieces highlighting the collaboration with Sun, went through iterations of Ghesquière's floral motifs and contrasting colors. It then gradually matured into softer textures, including a long dress made from precious cashmere and mink yarns.
As the collection grew, more architectural stories emerged: a series of bubble dresses, leather jackets with exaggerated shoulders, and sporty cocoon coats were all familiar codes in Ghesquière's Vuitton playbook.
Also on Ghesquière's mind was how Chinese locals rethought the idea of dressing up, which meant less extremes and remaining more “balanced.” This idea was achieved with looks that combined fluid styles with sturdy footwear, such as a floral cocktail dress worn with a pair of combat boots or a floor-length skirt that revealed trail running shoes.
“It's quite subtle, but I wanted to reflect that approach of showing the love of fashion, but in its own way: informal, simple but well thought out,” Ghesquière observed.
Also inspired by the 50 Shades of Black he witnessed on the streets of Chengdu, Ghesquière recreated the drama with a wide-shouldered biker vest that came with black zippers and black metal snaps, which he paired with black leggings underneath. Chu also closed the show in a jet black dress, one with mismatched textures and silhouettes, another classic Ghesquière print.
Aspects of Louis Vuitton's first Voyager Show in Shanghai.
Yan Yufeng/World Water Day
When the show ended, front-row guests including Cate Blanchett, Jennifer Connelly, Regina King, Jackson Wang, Liu Yifei and Zhou Dongyu gave Ghesquière a standing ovation, cementing his 10-year tenure at Vuitton.
Ghesquière's fun and exuberant collection, which has already begun to arrive in stores around the world, will also be partially viewable, buy now.
A more comprehensive range of the collection will embark on a review tour of Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Guangzhou, Nanjing and Qingdao in an effort to court wealthy customers who will continue to shell out money for luxury items despite a slowdown of the sector amid broader economic uncertainties. .
In the first quarter, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton saw spending by Chinese customers increase 10 percent, although there was a shift toward overseas purchases.
Hard figures and financial prospects aside, Ghesquière managed to hit all the high notes with his latest collection, one of the most commercial of the year, a creative feat in itself.
