“Oh, let the sun beat down upon my face, and stars fill my dream”. For those who watched on, either rather stylishly from the front row or from afar, the opening line from Led Zeppelin’s 1975 single ‘Kashmir’ couldn’t be more fitting of a tribute for Louis Vuitton’s recent 2023 Cruise Collection.
The sun was perched on the horizon of the Pacific casting a magnificent afterglow on the concrete terrain of the brutalist Salk Institute in balmy San Diego. The stars, which included Miranda Kerr, Léa Seydoux and Gemma Chan, were draped in the finest designs from the French maison’s Creative Designer Nicolas Ghesquière.
The result? A celebratory display of California-isms fused with a futuristic approach to feminine dressing that will appeal to the sun saluter inclined. This show had some major solar power.
Over 56 looks, each characterised by an enchanting dichotomy between ancient silhouettes and ultramodern styling, Louis Vuitton set its sights on a marvellous future—one that’s heroic, audacious, valiant and most of all, champions the success of women.
Of course, we can’t talk about the collection without first establishing the language in which it’s speaking. With Ghesquière’s preference for exploring Louis Vuitton’s future through the lens of the past, the sartorial references to female warriors become abundantly clear.
With San Diego the host to the annual Comic-Con convention, the collection’s homage to superheroes in the form of a metallic armour, high octane prints, cycloptic eyewear and gilded arm cuffs was anything but subtle.
Dune-esque draping and head scarfs offered an almost mythological yet space-age attitude to the new resort range.
Elsewhere, reflective denim, leather mini skirts posing as belts and lustrous boxed-shaped tops proved to be the new uniform for the sci-fi sympathisers amongst us.
Are the Louis Vuitton models muses or solar deities? Either way, we wouldn’t be surprised if this collection finds itself on the upper echelon of a soon-to-be colonised Mars.
Bionic beauty meets metallic marvel, marie claire Australia editor-in-chief, Nicky Briger describes the collection as “tough-girl cool yet other-worldly all at once” from her vantage point in the highly-covetable front row seats.
“The skin-skimming belts, major sneakers, embellished boots and metallic bags will be on wish lists for years to come. And who doesn’t want a monogrammed skateboard?”
If you’re unfamiliar with Ghesquière oeuvre, this latest collection is proving it’s best to swiftly acquaint oneself with it, after all these timeless pieces will be around far longer than we are.
