A real fashion week with unreal ideas…
We have another Paris Fashion Week in the books, with an unreal choice for the Louis Vuitton Menswear curator. Louis Vuitton, upon the passing of influential designer Virgil Abloh, has been quietly juggling with the question: who will take over the menswear designs for the storied fashion house? In a potential hint from the brand, Colm Dillane of the Brooklyn-based brand KidSuper curated the Louis Vuitton menswear collection.
Colm Dillane
Colm Dillane, founder and head of the Brooklyn-based creative KidSuper, is not a stranger to Virgil Abloh, who awarded Colm the LVMH Karl Lagerfeld Prize two years ago. Starting by printing shirts on Gildan blanks with his friends, Dillane is something of a Willy Wonka-esque designer, whose designs have always maintained a whimsical and playful tone. KidSuper has always had pieces adorned with large original painted graphics, patchwork joining clashing patterns, and co-ords that were elevated with unique artwork. Louis Vuitton’s choice to pick Colm may indicate where the storied fashion house may be headed creatively, and as a standard bearer for the industry, it may indicate where fashion itself is headed in the coming year…
What this means for fashion and your brand?
Fashion in the last few years has been plagued with brands and designs that tout minimalism — see Balenciaga and Yeezy — but as always, the tide has been moving. As Louis Vuitton’s most recent runway show is an indicator, “norm-core” is a trend that will continue to see emphasis in 2023, but in a heightened, more artistically liberal version than the one we’ve seen from brands like Aimé Leon Dore. So what’s this all mean for your brand? The days of minimally printing a small graphic or embroidering small catchy words on the middle of a Gildan tee have passed. Blanks such as the heavyweight IND5000 in a variety of colors become hot commodities because they can be layered with trendy overcoats and trenches. In addition, we’ll see a higher emphasis on unique placements of embroidery and printing, with more and more emphasis on larger-than-life colors to differentiate from the herd of fashion. If you’re a brand owner or someone looking to make a statement, contact us at VisuallyPaired and let’s brainstorm some ideas so you can one day be in charge of your own runway show. Who knows, maybe even for Louis Vuitton? It all just starts with an idea and a good blank.
