Ghesquière has long mastered the art of collapsing time periods into a nebulous sartorial vision, but Cruise 2027 felt especially confident in its contradictions. Hosted at The Frick – a space where art from the Renaissance to the late nineteenth century are displayed in one of New York City’s last great Gilded Age mansions – the collection ricocheted between decades without ever becoming costume. There were unmistakable nods to the 1960s throughout: warm palettes dominated by oranges and blues, pillbox hats, tan leather blazers and mini skirts galore. But just as quickly, those references collided with pointed 1980s power shoulders, bubble-shouldered dresses and military-style jackets that marched through the space with deliberate force.
The show’s collaboration with Keith Haring delivered some of its loudest and most playful moments. Haring’s iconic figurines appeared across tops and bags, metallic cut-out earrings caught the shifting light, and a bib-front “New York” shirt leaned knowingly into the city hosting the show. Importantly, this was not Haring’s first dialogue with the House. In the lead-up to Cruise 2027, Louis Vuitton shared on Instagram an archival image of the artist’s now-famous 1930s Louis Vuitton leather suitcase covered in his marker drawings from 1984 – a subtle teaser that connected the collaboration back to the House’s own history.
@Louis Vuitton
