The show must go on – even when there’s no live audience. For the first time in its storied history, Paris Fashion Week has presented a full digital-only season, and for Louis Vuitton this came with a silver lining. Usually masters of a magnificent, all-immersive runway experience, with no guests to accommodate, on Wednesday the French luxury house put on a show in the intimate Michelangelo sculpture galleries at the Louvre.
Models paraded the fall/winter 2021 collection while mingling with ancient Roman and Greek sculptures. The clothes took cues from Ancient Greece, with gladiator skirts in sporty neoprene, lace-up sandal-bootie hybrids and classic iconography designed by Italian interiors house Piero Fornasetti. “Fornasetti is a partnership I’ve wanted to make for a long time. I’m very intrigued by the world: the very beautiful drawings of divinity and representations of women,” creative director Nicolas Ghesquière said of the collaboration.
Every look was infused with futurism, as we’ve come to expect from Louis Vuitton. There were metallic jacquards, shots of slick leather and street-smart hoods embellished with shiny sequins. Silhouettes were relaxed and oversized, and sports jackets paired with puffy tulle skirts and stompy boots.
The overall feeling was bold and upbeat – a subtle nod to the Golden Age of travel on which Louis Vuitton was built. “I wanted something impactful, something that conveys hope and joy for what’s coming next, and for people to have a good time watching,” Ghesquière said. “A moment of fashion.”
Photography by Giovanni Gianonni.
