Virgil Abloh Is Louis Vuitton’s New Creative Director For Men’s Wear
Iconic fashion house Louis Vuitton chooses Virgil Abloh as its new artistic director. Abloh is a longtime creative director for rapper and designer Kanye West.
A Symbol Of Change
Abloh is also the founder of the haute streetwear label Off-White. He will be the artistic director of menswear for Louis Vuitton, one of the oldest and most powerful brands in luxury fashion.
Abloh is the first ever African-American creative director at Louis Vuitton, not to mention, one of the very few black designers in positions of power in general. Both Balmain and Givenchy have black designers and creative directors at the top.
The designer is looking to move his family to Paris in order to begin work with the company. He's excited to both map out the future of Louis Vuitton and to be a role model for future generations.
"To show a younger generation that there is no one way anyone in this kind of position has to look is a fantastically modern spirit in which to start," he said.
The move comes as part of a recent shake-up on the menswear side of Louis Vuitton beginning in January with the loss of Abloh's predecessor, Kim Jones. Jones has since moved to Christian Dior.
Michael Burke, chief executive of Louis Vuitton, feels it's a good fit for the high-fashion brand.
"Virgil is incredibly good at creating bridges between the classic and the zeitgeist of the moment," he said.
The two met 12 years ago when Abloh was interning at Fendi with Kanye West while Burke was chief executive. He noted the two disrupted the atmosphere in a great way.
Ready For The Challenge
Abloh founded Off-White in 2013 in spite of having no formal fashion education to his name. He has worked with West for over a decade also.
Elsewhere, he's collaborated with the likes of Nike, Jimmy Choo, and even has a project with IKEA in the pipeline. His collaboration with Nike, in particular, was notable for creating some of the most coveted sneakers in recent memory.
He described the move to Louis Vuitton as reminiscent of the ideal collaboration. Abloh is expected to give menswear a more relevant feel for the millennial generation. He plans to focus on how the brand communicates with consumers.
Abloh will continue to run Off-White and to work with West. However, he will cut back on moonlighting as a DJ. His first show will be at Paris Men's Fashion Week this coming June.
A post shared by @virgilabloh on Mar 25, 2018 at 9:43pm PDT
