Remembering Virgil Abloh’s Best Moments at Louis Vuitton

Though Virgil Abloh held his role as artistic director of menswear at Louis Vuitton for almost four years, it often felt as though he was only just getting started. His was a total reimagining of the brand, which transformed every aspect of its visual identity – from its stores, to its ad campaigns, to its casting, and even the celebrities who became affiliated with it.

Abloh’s death in November was gutting, primarily because of the loss of such a young and brilliantly influential figure, who had created opportunities for so many. But it was tragic, too, that his work at arguably the world’s most famous luxury brand was cut short, when it still held so much promise. As Louis Vuitton begins the inevitable search for Abloh’s successor, it’s to be hoped that they will continue what he started.

On Thursday January 20, at 2.30pm CET, Vuitton will reveal the final collection designed by Abloh and his team. Before then, HYPEBEAST has rounded up just a few of his most memorable – and industry-shifting – moments for the brand.

The Debut

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Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2019.Louis Vuitton

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Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2019.Louis Vuitton

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Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2019Louis Vuitton

It’s hard to remember a more hotly anticipated reveal than Abloh’s first collection for Vuitton, for Spring / Summer 2019. The audience – both at the show itself, and those watching remotely – seemed equally split between fans and naysayers. Yet Abloh surprised both, with a collection that elegantly nodded to the codes installed by his predecessor, Kim Jones, but which offered a more relaxed, pragmatic view of how men dress now. And who could forget the harness-inspired body rigs layered above the looks, which became an overnight sensation?

The Bags, of Course

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Bags from Louis Vuitton.Louis Vuitton

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Bags from Louis Vuitton.Heison Ho/Hypebeast

It would be churlish to discuss Louis Vuitton without acknowledging its most iconic product. Yet reimagining the house’s signature monogrammed and checked bags must be the most daunting prospect for any incoming designer.

If it made Abloh nervous, it was impossible to tell. From the very first collection, his reinterpretation of the House style was confident yet nuanced, respecting the brand’s heritage while unafraid to add his own innovations. The chain-strapped styles, which were one of the first he brought to the house, were equal parts sophisticated, playful, and highly relevant to the customer he designs for. In keeping, then, with Abloh’s entire creative output.

Alton Mason

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Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2019.Louis Vuitton

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Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2019.Louis Vuitton

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Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2019.Louis Vuitton

Most would agree that Abloh’s sophomore collection, for Fall / Winter 2019, didn’t quite reach the heights of his first – in experimenting with ever-greater volume and scale, some of the looks threatened to overwhelm the models. But the show’s finale, which saw the model Alton Mason dancing and flipping in tribute to Michael Jackson (a long-time icon of Abloh’s), was ingrained as one of those unforgettable, had-to-be-there moments. And in its luxurious reconfiguring of sport and streetwear-inspired ensembles, it set the template for a raft of other brands to follow.

NIGO

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NIGO x Louis Vuitton.Louis Vuitton

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NIGO x Louis Vuitton.Louis Vuitton

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NIGO x Louis Vuitton.Louis Vuitton

One of the defining qualities of Abloh’s Vuitton tenure will be the collaborative, everyone’s-welcome spirit that he fostered. And nowhere was that more evident than when Abloh, at this point only 18 months into his role, announced that NIGO would be co-designing a capsule collection for the brand. With a focus on denim, alongside some witty reworkings of the brand’s Damier check, it was a near-instant sellout, and prompted the commissioning of a second link-up between the two.

‘Heaven on Earth’

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Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2020.Louis Vuitton

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NIGO x Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2020.Louis Vuitton

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NIGO x Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2020.Louis Vuitton

Even from his debut, Abloh showed little hesitation in tackling tailoring, as he searched for ways to give new relevance to traditional suits. His Fall/Winter 2020 collection for the house, Heaven on Earth, showed the clearest distillation of his vision for tailoring, offering as it slimmer, more streamlined cut, and a quietly subdued palette. Yet his finale looks, printed with Magritte-esque clouds, were the ones that left the most indelible impression.

Air Force 1

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Louis Vuitton x Nike.Theimedsoussi

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Louis Vuitton x Nike.Theimedsoussi

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Louis Vuitton x Nike.Theimedsoussi

Abloh’s relationship with Nike was longstanding and fruitful, creating some of the highest-reselling styles of the last decade. It made sense, then, that Abloh would introduce a Nike collab alongside LV’s in-house sneaker offers. When it was revealed last summer, it felt like a redefining moment sneaker collabs and an acknowledgment that, really, those are the only two brands that everyone is really watching.

‘Amen Break’

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Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2022.Louis Vuitton

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Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2022.Louis Vuitton

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Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2022.Louis Vuitton

Abloh’s later collections for Vuitton became increasingly brave in their ambitions, as Abloh appeared to grow in confidence in his role (helped, no doubt, by what were largely agreed to be robust sales). His Spring/Summer 2022 collection, titled Amen Break – the last full seasonal collection presented before his death – was a fitting culmination of the ideas he had explored since his first show, merging sportswear, tailored elements, pop colours, and a melding of African influences with pop-culture winks.

The collection was re-shown in Miami only a few days after Abloh’s death was announced, and opened with a recording of the designer, expressing the hope that his work would encourage “adults to behave like children again…back into a sense of wonderment.”