Louis Vuitton Men’s SS21 Collection By Virgil Abloh Stops In Tokyo For Its Second Show

For his Spring-Summer 2021 Louis Vuitton Men’s collection called ‘Message in a Bottle,’ Virgil Abloh showcased the line in Tokyo at the Japanese capital’s International Cruise Terminal—an apt location considering the animated Zooom With Friends teaser video depicts the collection traveling in crates by water from one city to the next. The smoky stage was set with the oversized LV crates, as well as a screen, which played snippets of films made by Takashi Miike and Caleb Femi. Always challenging the traditional methodologies of showcasing fashion collections, Abloh opted for models walking out in groups, walking, exploring, dancing on the “stage” for a performance that was live-streamed globally. Embracing diversity was a large part of the show in more ways than one—from the multicultural models themselves and to even pieces that touted international flags. In addition, two-tone pieces drew inspiration from a Jamaican-English musical-genre-turned-fashion-movement from the 1960s called ska, while Abloh’s personal heritage was also interspersed with the heritage of the French fashion House, with “Pan-African genetics partly rooted in the Kente cloth of the Ashanti Kingdom of Ghana, the birthplace of Virgil Abloh’s Abloh’s parents,” for instance. Of course, the upcycling/recycling ideology was heavily represented in the looks—60 of which made their debut in Tokyo—as was Abloh’s exploration of boyhood. Scroll to see some looks/scenography from the show and the entire video below, and click here to visit the House’s website to discover more. 

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