What goes on stage for the Maison Louis Vuitton’s spring/summer 2023 collection is a fairy-tale, almost surreal narrative. In the setting of the Cour Carrée of the Louvre, a mobile structure reminiscent of large theme park games, “monster-flower,” created in collaboration with artist Philippe Parreno, depicts a giant flower that represents the designer’s work on the macro dimension and his focus on femininity. The feminine character comes out with great emphasis, in all its complexity and magnificence. The point of view from which the analysis and design of the collection starts expands, not stopping at appearance but finding the true essence in every detail, making it obvious and giving it enormous importance. It looks like a game, a sporty chic fun-looking tale that gives a unique show.
“It is a stylistic exercise that reevaluates the proportions of clothing, a proof by which the codes of femininity break down in scale. The infinitely large and the infinitely small come together on silhouettes inviting a new point of view.”
Zippers that usually close dresses and tend to be hidden become the dress itself, in full; bows are great elements of volume; buckles and hooks also return as fundamental to the dress as they are in micro size for handbags and accessories; the address tag and padlocks we usually see on duffel bags and suitcases are clutch bags carried by hand. It is all cleverly thought out and harmonized to tell a unique point of view with perfect balance. All the elements seen on the runway are characteristic of the brand’s history, part of the great craftsmanship that characterizes it. Each part fits the game of proportions: maxi bags with giant monograms, macro pockets that refer to the element of travel so dear to the Maison. The color palette and choice of materials is broad, just like the perspective of his fashion Ghesquière wants to give us. From the classic tones of black and white that open the défilé, we come to green, light blue, red and pink. All these shades are presented in contrasting fabrics, there is technical research and tradition, modernity and history, jersey and leather, wool and cotton. The designer’s off-scale work engages the viewer to reflect on his or her own global perception of the image of detail and femininity. A vision that disrupts the dimensions and conceptions of the individual.
