Last night, Nicolas Ghesquiere showed his Louis Vuitton Cruise 19 collection amongst the sculptural gardens of The Maeght Foundation in the south of France. The striking modernist art gallery, in the village of Saint-Paul de Vence — designed by Catalan architect Josep Lluís Sert — is home to work by Joan Miró, Alberto Giacometti, Georges Braque and Marc Chagall.
Situated an hour outside of Cannes, it perfectly captured Ghesquiere’s desire to take his Cruise audience on a cultural tour; previously transporting guests to the stunning mountaintop Miho Museum in Kyoto, the Bob Hope Estate in Palm Springs and the Niterói Contemporary Art Museum in Rio de Janeiro.
Drawing inspiration for the collection from the gallery itself — “an intelligent, beautiful site. A place that has spirit” he said — this was Ghesquiere at his best. A shaman was flown in from Brazil to keep away the rain that has doggedly threatened this trip, and there was something magic in the air as the models navigated the extraordinary Joan Miró labyrinth.
A mash-up of 80s futurism, with deconstructed tailoring, and futuristic silhouettes, Nicolas called it “a celebration of eclecticism”, that cut and spliced many of the codes he has established over the past five years.
The femininity of silk blouses, skirts and dresses, were set off by giant sneakers and mannish jackets. From big and boxy to cropped. Favourites included the round-shouldered 80s bomber jackets, and a dazzling crystal encrusted blazer with dramatic black lapels worn by Rianne Van Rompaey.
For the accessories, Nicolas collaborated with good friend and former American Vogue Creative Director Grace Coddington, on a series of cat shaped bags based on her inimitable drawings. Grace — who attended the show in a pair of red monogrammed LV cat print pyjamas — said, “My collaboration with Nicolas and his team has been so much fun. I hope it will be a dream come true for (my cats) Pumpkin, Blanket and Nicolas’ dog — it certainly is for me. It started with our love for animals, it’s where Nicolas and I really connect beyond fashion.”
The star of the show were the trainers. Capitalising on summer/summer 18’s sell out Archlight sneaker (who’s springy wave like sole was spotted on more guests than any other shoe), Ghesquiere presented a whole host of new designs for the hypebeasts to salivate over. From sci-fi and chunky, to thigh skimming and over the knee, each trainer came with a futuristic moulded rubber sole and a choice of bold colourways.
With Ghesquiere announcing last week that he has just renewed his contract as Artistic Director of Womenswear (#notgoinganywhere his Instagram post read), it is smart moves like this that ensure he stays at the forefront of the industry, and his designs at the top of our wish lists.
