In the aftermath of designer Virgil Abloh’s death last November, Louis Vuitton may well have become a house in creative freefall. Yet miraculously, the namesake leviathan of the LVMH flotilla marches onward; with presentations like the new Pre-Fall 2023 menswear collection existing as proof of concept of the former Men’s Artistic Director’s energetic, implacable legacy.
In parallel to Kim Jones’s latest pre-fall menswear showcase for Dior, Louis Vuitton has revealed a menswear collection that is similarly enamored with the mystic energies of sun and sand.
Entitled ‘The Desert Race’, the new collection – designed without a nominal artistic lead – still beats with the unmistakable pulse of a Virgil Abloh joint, bringing together Louis Vuitton’s historic affinity for proto-European tailoring with the many cultural reference points that define the Maison in the 2020s.
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Leaning with literal abandon into the ‘race’ part of the collection’s title, the initial looks for Pre-Fall pivot around statement pieces lifted from the world of motorcross, rallying and pitstop style in general. Vulcanised sneakers, knee-high compression socks and leather jackets – emblazoned, as if by scorching desert heat, with Abloh’s typically subversive logography – make for a stirring first impression; before gradually ceding the way to vaguely technical jacketing that takes a hi-viz approach to the art of colour blocking.
The Louis Vuitton man is undoubtedly a creature of the 21st century – at ease in the collection’s many pieces inspired by motorsport and (as you’ll glean if you look closely) DJ culture – but that doesn’t mean that modish sartorial clothes don’t have a part to play.
As the collection progresses onto greener pastures, we’re treated to a glimpse of what the future holds for tailored dressing. Highlights include a plethora of short-and-shirt combos fashioned from identical fabrics and a number of sartorial pieces – a cocaine-white two piece, textured in the house’s iconic ‘Monogram’ print – that speak to Louis Vuitton’s enduring fascination with the evolution of graphic codes.
Browse a selection of our favourite looks from the Pre-Fall 2023 menswear presentation below.
