Coronavirus Fears Spread at Paris Fashion Week as Agnès B Cancels and Show-Goers Wear Masks
Designers and celebrities alike are rethinking their Paris Fashion Week plans amid the coronavirus outbreak.
French fashion house agnès b. was scheduled to unveil its Winter 2020 collection on Monday, but cancelled the show over the weekend, Reuters confirmed, as the virus continues to infect people across Europe.
According to the Reuters report, six Chinese designers (Masha Ma, Shiatzy Chen, Uma Wang, Jarel Zhang, Calvin Luo and Maison Mai) cancelled Paris Fashion Week shows last month because of coronavirus, which first appeared in China in December 2019.
Italian fashion house Prada also called off a May show in Japan amid the health scare. And Chanel postponed an upcoming show in Beijing, China, stating that the decision was based on “the current situation and following the guidance of Chinese authorities,” the New York Post reports.
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Public health precautions in Paris have also led French officials to close down the famed Louvre museum, after staffers expressed fear of contamination from its many visitors. The Louvre remains closed on Monday per the museum’s Twitter.
Representatives from the Louvre have yet to comment on when the museum will re-open, but Andre Sacristin, a Louvre employee and union representative, recently told The Associated Press, “We are very worried because we have visitors from everywhere.”
“The risk is very, very, very great,” he continued.
Sacristin said that staffers also expressed concern over Italian museum workers who were visiting to collect works by Leonardo da Vinci that were loaned to the Louvre for a special exhibition. Italy has been the hardest-hit country in Europe so far, reporting a 50 percent jump in cases in just 24 hours and a current death toll of at least 34.
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The Louvre hasn’t currently reported any cases of the virus among its 2,300 workers, but Sacristin said, “it’s only a question of time.”
The museum is issuing refunds to everyone who purchased an entry ticket ahead of time.
Louis Vuitton is still planning to host its fall/winter 2020 show at the Louvre’s famed Cour Carrée courtyard on Tuesday night. The brand has been sharing updates on Instagram about its hotly anticipated Paris Fashion Week show — which drew Emma Roberts, Sienna Miller, Emma Stone and more to the front row last year.
A post shared by Louis Vuitton Official (@louisvuitton) on Mar 1, 2020 at 10:00pm PST
As of Monday, coronavirus (officially termed COVID-19) has spread to over 60 countries with over 88,000 people infected. The global death toll has surpassed 3,000, the Washington Post reports.
Outside of the virus’s epicenter in Wuhan, China, South Korea has reported the second-highest national caseload of 4,335 infected and 22 deaths. It’s followed by Italy with over 1,600 confirmed cases, while Iran surpassed 1,500, with 66 deaths.
