Virgil Abloh, Louis Vuitton designer and style visionary, dies at 41

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Designer Virgil Abloh goes backstage before presenting his Fall-Winter 2019-2020 off-white ready-to-wear collection, which was presented in Paris on Thursday, February 28, 2019. (AP Photo / Thibault Camus, File)

Virgil Abloh, the fashion designer who was the artistic director for men at Louis Vuitton and founded the Milan-based label Off-White, died on Sunday. He was 41.

The announcement of his death, published on Sunday afternoon on his official Instagram page, stated that he had privately battled “with a rare, aggressive form of cancer, cardiac angiosarcoma” for more than two years.

“With all of this, his work ethic, infinite curiosity and optimism have never wavered. Virgil was driven by his dedication to his craft and his mission to open doors to others and create avenues for greater equality in art and design, ”the statement reads. “He often said, ‘Everything I do is for the 17-year-old version of myself’ and is a firm believer in the power of art to inspire future generations.”

“We are all shocked by this terrible news,” said Bernard Arnault, CEO of Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy, in a statement. “Virgil was not only a brilliant designer and visionary, he was also a man with a beautiful soul and great wisdom. “

Abloh was considered one of the most influential and powerful black designers of his generation. As an artistic polymath, he also worked as a DJ, played at festivals like Chicago’s Lollapalooza, and opened up to artists like Travis Scott. He was also the longtime creative director for rapper Kanye West, who told the New York Times that Abloh was “one of the smartest, fastest, and most innovative people I’ve worked with.” In 2011 he received a Grammy nomination for his art direction of West and Jay-Z’s joint album “Watch the Throne”.

When he first stepped into the fashion world, he remembered feeling like an outsider. “We did about 60% of the shows,” he told W magazine about taking part in his first fashion shows in Paris with West. “We were a generation that was interested in fashion and shouldn’t be there. We saw this as our chance to participate and shape the current culture. In many ways, it felt like we were causing more excitement than the industry. “

After launching Off-White in 2013, with clothing with bold diagonal stripes and its iconic “all in quotes” philosophy (think: a black dress with “little black” or a scarf labeled “scarf” in Quotation Marks) quickly rose to become the industry leader. Vox called Off-White “the hottest fashion brand in the world”. W called Abloh “the king of social media super influencers”.

Although the brand had its critics, it managed to connect with both admirers of the old fashion houses and a generation that lives on social media.

“There’s a youthful folly about the brand, a gross sense of pop craziness – critics claim it’s fraudulent – unsuitable for a big house,” K-Austin Collins wrote for Vanity Fair. “Off-White’s characteristic diagonal stripes and ironic quotation marks are as encrypted and class-conscious for hype beasts and star-obsessed” as interlocking LV monograms are for another generation. “

FILE – Fashion designer Virgil Abloh gives a thumbs up after presenting the Spring-Summer 2019 Off-White men’s collection, which was presented in Paris on Wednesday June 20, 2018. Abloh, a leading fashion manager hailed as the Karl Lagerfeld of his generation, has died after a private battle with cancer. He was 41. (AP Photo / Thibault Camus, file)

In 2018 he was appointed Artistic Director of the Louis Vuitton men’s collection. Michael Burke, CEO of Louis Vuitton, said in a statement at the time: “Having followed Virgil’s rise with great interest since working with me at Fendi in 2006, I am thrilled to see how his innate creativity and disruptive approach have taken him made it so relevant. not only in the fashion world, but today in popular culture. “

That same year, Time Magazine named him one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World, and Japanese artist Takashi Murakami writes of Abloh: “Everything from the way he works to the way he uses his time is principled. The basis of its value or trademark is humanity itself, not a superficial trick. “

“In a way, my overall result was convincing me to take on such a role,” Abloh told the New York Times of the appointment. “I see it as a kind of ultimate collaboration.”

As a designer, Abloh often bridged the gap between what was traditionally considered high and low fashion. Robin Givhan of the Washington Post described him as “a designer who managed to pack pop culture, zeitgeist, the aura of cool, the glamor of celebrity and a kind of shiny hipster variety into motorcycle jackets, t-shirts and sneakers. ”

“Abloh is a self-taught designer whose aesthetic is derived from his surroundings and friends, his love for the lightness of streetwear and his appreciation for the status and luxury of high-end clothing,” wrote Givhan. “In his work, he has not made stuffy intellectual arguments about who and what the culture values, but rather underscored the manner in which fashion must change in order to adapt to its evolving customer base with nonchalance and confidence.”

Abloh was born on September 30, 1980 in Rockville, Illinois, to Ghanaian immigrants. He studied civil engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and received his masters degree in architecture from the Illinois Institute of Technology. Although he never officially studied design, his mother tailor taught him the basics of the craft.

He was creatively restless and possessed of seemingly limitless energy throughout his career. Although best known for his work in menswear, Abloh was known to try his hand at other endeavors, from designing furniture (which resulted in a collaboration with Ikea) to automobiles (which resulted in a one-of-a-kind creation with Mercedes-Benz led). in which he reinterpreted the company’s G-Class SUV as a racing car).

“Fashion is kind of a joke,” Abloh told The Cut in 2017. “I don’t get lost in my clothes too much. For me it’s a big art project, just a canvas to show that fashion should have a brand that is backed by someone who is interested in different contexts. Social things. “

In 2019, the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago hosted an exhibition entitled “Virgil Abloh: ‘Figures of Speech'” which featured music, fashion architecture and design from his entire career and as “the first museum exhibition on the work of the cross-genre artist and designer. “

Following the announcement on Sunday, tributes to Abloh poured in on Twitter. Many referred to actor Chadwick Boseman, who died in August 2020 after also battling cancer privately.

“Rest in Power,” tweeted actor and rapper Riz Ahmed. “Gone too early, but your legacy lives on. Stretched culture and that changed the game. Thank you for all you have done to support so many and for how you have made us rethink what is possible. “

“Such a heavy loss for someone who has years of creativity ahead of them. Rest in power, Virgil Abloh, ”tweeted designer Michael Bierut.

Thank you “for inspiring generations to come first,” tweeted musician Thundercat. “Your work has changed so many lives. We love you. Rest in peace legendary king. “

“You taught us all how to dream,” tweeted fashion designer Jeff Staple.

According to Sunday’s announcement, Abloh “will be survived by his loving wife Shannon Abloh, his children Lowe Abloh and Gray Abloh, his sister Edwina Abloh, his parents Nee and Eunice Abloh and numerous dear friends and colleagues”.

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