Virgil Abloh, fashion’s highest profile Black designer and the creative mind behind Louis Vuitton’s menswear collections, died on Sunday of cancer, Vuitton’s owner LVMH said.
The French luxury goods giant said Abloh, 41, had been battling cancer privately for years.
“Virgil was not only a genius designer, a visionary, he was also a man with a beautiful soul and great wisdom,” LVMH’s billionaire boss Bernard Arnault said in a statement.
LVMH, Louis Vuitton and Off White are devastated to announce the passing of Virgil Abloh, on Sunday, November 28th, of cancer, which he had been battling privately for several years. pic.twitter.com/CytwZLvSFu
— LVMH (@LVMH) November 28, 2021
Abloh, a U.S. national who also worked as a DJ and visual artist, had been men’s artistic director for Vuitton, the world’s biggest luxury brand, since March 2018.
His arrival at LVMH marked the marriage between streetwear and high-end fashion, mixing sneakers and camouflage pants with tailored suits and evening gowns. His influences included graffiti art, hip hop and skateboard culture.
The style was embraced by the group as it sought to breathe new life into some labels and attract younger customers.
In July this year, LVMH expanded his role, giving him a mandate to launch new brands and partner with existing ones in a variety of sectors beyond fashion.
View link »
LVMH also bought a 60 per cent stake in Abloh’s Off-White label, which it folded into the spirits-to-jewelry conglomerate.
Abloh drew on messages of inclusivity and gender-fluidity to expand the Louis Vuitton label’s popularity, weaving themes of racial identity into his fashion shows with poetry performances and art installations.
With an eye to reaching Asian consumers grounded by the coronavirus pandemic, the designer sent his collections of colorful suits and utilitarian-flavored outerwear off to Shanghai last summer, when many labels canceled fashion shows.
“Virgil Abloh was the essence of modern creativity,” said an Instagram post by Alexandre Arnault, one of Bernard Arnault’s sons and executive vice president for product and communications at U.S. jeweler Tiffany, which LVMH bought this year.
News of Abloh’s death was met with tributes on social media from the likes of rapper Drake, singer/producer Pharrell Williams, actor Idris Elba and more.
View this post on Instagram
My heart is broken
Virgil you were a kind, generous, thoughtful creative genius
your work as a human and your work as a spiritual being will live forever
Sending love and light to your wife, children, family and day ones
you’re with the Master now, shine
,
P— Pharrell Williams (@Pharrell) November 28, 2021
Too soon Virgil. You will be missed from this world man.
— Idris Elba (@idriselba) November 28, 2021
Virgil man. Shit.
— Certified ?uestover (@questlove) November 28, 2021
I wish we lived in a world where we could celebrate the living instead of celebrating them when they leave. Rest In Peace to my brother Virgil ! You were loved.
— Odell Beckham Jr (@obj) November 28, 2021
View this post on Instagram
RIP VIRGIL
— VINCE STAPLES (@vincestaples) November 28, 2021
rest in absolute peace. shocking. thank you Virgil
— Kehlani (@Kehlani) November 28, 2021
(Reporting by Silvia Aloisi; Editing by John Irish and Catherine Evans)
© Reuters
