Louis Vuitton Will Parade Unseen Looks by the Late Virgil Abloh in Bangkok
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The late Virgil Abloh was famously prolific, and nine unseen looks from his last collection for Louis Vuitton will soon be unveiled in Bangkok.
On Tuesday, Vuitton announced that it will stage a “spin-off show” in Thailand’s capital on June 1 at 7:30 p.m. local time. It is to be livestreamed on the brand’s website.
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The nine never-before-seen looks from the original fall 2022 collection are said to explore three ideas — “the coming-of-age premise, the global perspective and the cycle of creativity” — through “circular motifs.”
The original collection was 95 percent completed by the time of Abloh’s unexpected death from cancer last November at the age of 41, and carried all his signatures, with a strong romantic undertone.
It will be paraded in a new version of the sky blue “Louis Dreamhouse” set erected for the original Paris show in January that incorporated rooftops, chimneys and a bedroom. The show is to unfurl in the IconSiam complex in Bangkok, where Louis Vuitton operates one of its five Thailand boutiques.
Vuitton said it has planned a “cinematic prelude” by director Sivaroj Kongsakul for its social channels. Titled “I Dreamt of You,” it’s an expression of Abloh’s Boyhood Ideology — seeing the world with the unspoiled eyes of a child.
“Based on the filmmaker’s own childhood memories, the story follows the formative experiences of an 11-year-old boy in the surroundings of rural Thailand. It is an illustration of a belief integral to Virgil Abloh’s world view: Youth is global,” according to Vuitton.
Abloh summed up that belief in a quote uttered in June 2019: “We might go to India or Kansas or Cuba, but wherever we go, the focus is youth: the stage in your life before you’ve been taught or programmed to do, think or wear certain things. And in that study, you realize that teenagers on opposite sides of the world are dealing with the same things. It reflects the fact that, fundamentally, we are all one.”
Vuitton staged its first spin-off shows last year in Shanghai and Miami, drawing a distinction with brands that continue to mount repeat or replica shows in key international markets.
“Each show has an intimate relationship with its predecessor and announces its successor. A spin-off reinforces and builds on the previous show,” Michael Burke, Vuitton’s chairman and chief executive officer, explained to WWD at the time. “The client wants to see the next iteration of the designer’s point of view.”
The nine unseen looks will be available in Vuitton stores in August, or clients can preorder right after the June 1 show.
Vuitton is also gearing up for its spring 2023 show on June 23 during Paris Men’s Fashion Week. That collection will be credited to the men’s design studio, the brand confirmed.
SEE ALSO:
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Here’s Why Louis Vuitton Is Staging Spin-off Shows in Shanghai, Miami
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