American designer Pharrell Williams waves to the public at the end of his fashion show for Louis Vuitton on the Pont-Neuf in Paris, June 20, 2023 (AFP/JULIEN DE ROSA)
Dandys, camouflage outfits and checkerboard bags in bold colors: the first show-event by multi-faceted designer Pharrell Williams for Louis Vuitton was held on Tuesday on the Pont-Neuf in Paris, in front of 1,750 guests including Rihanna, Beyonce, Jay- Z or Zendaya.
On the first day of men’s fashion week, the show, a stone’s throw from the luxury house’s headquarters, stood out for its spectacular location.
Models parade for Pharrell Williams’ first fashion show for Louis Vuitton, in Paris on June 20, 2023 (AFP/JULIEN DE ROSA)
The models, with very different physique, paraded on a huge golden carpet unrolled all along the oldest bridge in Paris, to the notes of a gospel choir and an orchestra led by the star pianist Lang Lang.
The choice of gold, though not very present in the outfits, is “a nod to the sun, the central point of the collection”, says Louis Vuitton.
Among the silhouettes presented, a chic military aesthetic emerged, like the close-fitting camouflage suit worn by the designer, his partner and their four children.
The parade-event of American designer Pharrell Williams for Louis Vuitton, in Paris on June 20, 2023 (AFP / JULIEN DE ROSA)
The shoes are imposing, the suits closer to the body than in the past, the checkerboard, the brand’s reference motif, is omnipresent, especially on the bags worn by the models and displayed on carts, reminding us that Vuitton is first and foremost a leather workshop.
The guest stars, which also included basketball player LeBron James, Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton, actor Omar Sy and footballer Paul Pogba, made their entrance on a golden carpet, to the sound of the accordion.
Rarely, Pharrell Williams granted media time before the parade. “There are a lot of people who lost their lives” before black culture found its way into the fashion world, he told AFP.
“We would have liked our culture and our community not to have to suffer so much for us to be here,” added the author of the planetary hit “Happy”, named at the start of the year to succeed another black creator. -American, Virgil Abloh, who died suddenly at the end of 2021.
“We can expect a commercial success, it is one of the most anticipated collections of Fashion Week and it is really a very significant moment for the history of fashion”, commented for AFP Alexandre Samson , head of the haute couture and contemporary design departments at the Palais Galliera, the Paris fashion museum.
DJ, singer, songwriter, producer who collaborates with both artist Takashi Murakami and rapper Jay-Z, Pharrell Williams, 50, is an “iconic” profile for Vuitton. He has an approach to art and extremely popular style”, adds Alexandre Samson.
© 2023 AFP
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