A year ago, in the Before Times, Nicolas Ghesquière staged the last fashion show as we used to know them. Today he was back at it, only without an audience or the 200 choral singers who performed in that season’s special Es Devlin–designed set. But COVID restrictions aside, the Louis Vuitton creative director was certainly not hurting for supporting players.

Ghesquière made a runway of the Louvre’s Denon wing, his models mingling with ancient Roman, Greek, and Etruscan sculptures to the tunes of Daft Punk’s mega-hit “Around the World.” The notoriously hard-to-get duo agreed to lend the song for the show weeks ago, he said, pre-breakup. He also divined a collaboration with the Italian design atelier Fornasetti, and its famous hand-drawn faces of women from antiquity peered out from all manner of clothes and leather goods. This was a show absolutely teeming with life, even though we were all watching from our laptop screens and smartphones.

That was the point: “Since we are all in a motionless situation, we have to double our imagination of inventing an extraordinary journey,” Ghesquière said during a Zoom preview. That goes for the collection as much as the production values surrounding it. A year in lockdown has nurtured designers’ decorative instincts, in spite of—or perhaps because of—the collective turn to sweatpants and other home wear. In anticipation of a late 2021 reemergence, fashion has gone absolutely extroverted.

Operating at high frequency, Ghesquière lavished attention on both silhouettes and surface treatments. Propelled by the concept of movement, he alternated between blouson jackets and cocooning capes on the one hand and elongated torsos punctuated with skirts that bubbled around the knees on the other. Nearly all the looks were accompanied by wedge-heel boots with a slouchy, swaggering disposition. Equally, though, this collection was a showcase for the LV atelier’s savoir faire: jewel-encrusted tunics peeked from under color-blocked parkas and bombers, and otherwise simple ’60s-ish dresses in A-line or sack shapes were minutely embroidered in graphic patterns and motifs. The closing pair of gladiator dresses were canvases for Fornasetti drawings of ancient statuary.

“I wanted something impactful, something that conveys hope and joy for what’s coming next, and for people to have a good time watching,” Ghesquière said. “A moment of fashion.” The video ends with the last model peering up at the Winged Victory of Samothrace, a Hellenistic sculpture dating to the 2nd century B.C. that has occupied its current spot in the Louvre since 1884. As Beyoncé made abundantly clear in the video she made at the museum with Jay Z., Victoire is a potent symbol. Here and there Ghesquière showed an understated peacoat, a quilted cape in a neutral shade of taupe gray, or a sturdy work jacket, but these were mostly foils for frocks of the gilded lamé sort underneath. This was a collection of Louis Vuitton trophy pieces for the coming-out parties we’re anticipating after a year in suspended animation.

In other news, Rick Owens Fall 2021 fashion show. On the subject of underthings, the pentagram briefs from the January men’s show reappeared here wrapped around evening clutches, the implication being that these alien females had handled the “unhinged male aggression” that those briefs signified.

“I wanted something impactful, something that conveys hope and joy for what’s coming next, and for people to have a good time watching,” Ghesquière said. “A moment of fashion.”

Louis Vuitton has released a new men’s leather goods collection titled Aerogram.

An aerogram is a lightweight sheet of writing paper that folds to form an envelope with a printed stamp, ready to be sent by airmail.

Louis Vuitton has taken the name and turned it into a symbol for the Art of Travel that brings along with it the heritage of the house’s globally recognized fashion and the beautiful, magical experience of aviation.

This new collection of men’s leather goods draws inspiration from typical luggage designs and conveys a more contemporary than ever vision of travel. 

In other news, Rick Owens Fall 2021 Men's. “I’m always conscious of my own aggression. And the older that I get, I feel like I should have reached a level of serenity that I just haven’t; I get impatient, I get itchy, I snap at people sometimes… Aggression is something that I’m fascinated with because I’m constantly conscious of wrestling with it, personally. And I think that that’s true of every man.”

Louis Vuitton Explores The Art of Travel.

LOUIS VUITTON AEROGRAM MEN'S LEATHER GOODS COLLECTION

Nicolas Ghesquière celebrates his latest release for Louis Vuitton with a striking and colorful series of portraits.

Stepping once again into the role of photographer, Ghesquière lenses his Spring 2021 collection on a range of talented friends and collaborators – including the newest Louis Vuitton ambassador, tennis champion Naomi Osaka. He captures them in simple studio portraiture, letting both the uniquely structural aspects of his designs and his models’ character and mood shine through. Each image is framed with a solid square of bright color, emphasizing the elements of personality.

Though it is ostensibly a womenswear collection, we are happy to see Ghesquière continue to highlight non-binary possibilities by bringing in some men as well. Not only is the idea of gendered handbags being beautifully deconstructed, but also that of gendered fashion and self-expression in general.

The campaign fits into a wider push by Ghesquière to position himself not just as the house’s designer of women’s collections, but as a consistent and recognizable creative visionary – perhaps something akin to the status his counterpart Virgil Abloh enjoys. Photographing his collections at his own studio and finishing each image off with his signature, he shows himself to be in deft control of his own creative world. But he matches his talent with an impressive humility, keeping things simple to let the strength of his work, and the friendships he maintains, speak for themselves.

Review of Louis Vuitton Spring 2021 Ad Campaign by Creative Director Nicolas Ghesquière with Chloé Bailey, Halle Bailey, Jennifer Connelly, Cody Fern, Laura Harrier, Carolyn Murphy, Naomi Osaka, Angelica Ross, Jaden Smith, Emma Stone, Sophie Turner, and Liu Yifei. 

LOUIS VUITTON WOMEN'S SPRING 2021 AD CAMPAIGN

Louis Vuitton pairs two must-have items of the season – the house’s classic Alma bag and quarantine bangs – for a campaign full of brightness and energy. The Spring 2021 campaign is photographed by Steven Meisel.

The first thing that grabs us about the imagery is the hair. Hairstylist extraordinaire Duffy nails that DIY quarantine fringe look that many of us have been driven to explore while locked down (though, sadly, probably without such excellent results). Armored up with sassy bangs and flowing locks, our girl gang brings a vivacious energy, as if they have just gotten together after a year inside and are ready to step out into a world of springtime. Cohesive styling from Carine Roitfeld finds rhythmic pops of bright color.

The film offers a fun and somewhat fantastical glimpse into the process of the shoot. With casual confidence our long-legged heroines stride onto the set, making their job look easy. The joy they exude is so infectious, it’s almost impossible not to smile.

With its strong tone of springtime togetherness, the campaign feels smartly timed to the moment. It sends a bright note of optimism that soon we will get to feel the breeze, smell the flowers, and be among (stylish) friends.

Louis Vuitton Creative Director |  Nicolas Ghesquière

Models | Rianne Van Rompaey, Sacha Quenby, Sora Choi, & Vittoria Ceretti

Review of Louis Vuitton Alma Spring 2021 Ad Campaign by Louis Vuitton Creative Director Nicolas Ghesquière and Photographer Steven Meisel.

LOUIS VUITTON ALMA SPRING 2021 AD CAMPAIGN

When Virgil Abloh’s characters first appeared during the 2020 Digital Fashion Week in Paris, Zoooom with friends took the establishment by storm with their joyfully animated escapades throughout the city. The show concluded as they packed their Louis Vuitton trunks and climbed aboard shipping containers headed East via the Seine. Soon reborn in Shanghai and Tokyo as gigantic balloons, Zoooom with friends has now embarked on a global adventure, celebrating the House’s spirit of travel.

Miami was the friendly crew’s first stop in North America, where the characters were revealed and manifested in an interactive experience launched during Design Miami as part of Louis Vuitton’s well-established commitment the arts. Now, Zoooom with friends has journeyed across the country for a West Coast debut in Beverly Hills on Rodeo Drive. Open to the public, the residency features both the characters and their bespoke containers amongst a full suite of menswear.

The Men’s Spring 2021 collection featured in the Beverly Hills Temporary Residency is said to be founded on four methods of upcycling: new looks made from recycled material, looks repeated from the Fall 2020 collection, looks freely created by the studio during the lockdown using recycled material, and new looks created from existing ideas.

The Louis Vuitton Men’s Temporary Residency will also feature custom AR experiences on the exterior of the building. QR codes affixed to the façade will activate Snapchat filters, allowing guests to interact with the characters’ animated incarnations, generating shareable content.

LOUIS VUITTON OPENS MEN'S POP-UP ON RODEO DRIVE

Nicolas Ghesquière photographed the actress Stacy Martin for this series of images. He’s stepped behind the camera for Louis Vuittion before. “It comes from my love for photographers,” he said of his turn as a lensman. “I wanted to understand the feeling they had when they were shooting. It’s fun, also, to build the picture itself and the story behind the picture. That’s my motivation: to share something that I see with people.”

For pre-fall Ghesquière sees his friend Martin in a rarefied setting wearing his clothes in nonchalant ways. The shoot took place at a chateau in the French countryside, and at least some of the images are the designer’s impressionistic takes on movie memories—only Glenn Close’s Sunny von Bulow didn’t wear her ’60s shift over logo-printed athleisure with purple shower slides and a bright pink crossbody bag slung high on her torso.

Ghesquière said he charged the LV studio with identifying his house signatures this season and that they came back to him with three distinct categories: energetic “vitamin” colors, romantic clothes, and twists on wardrobe essentials. “In this moment of confusion,” he said, “we focused on fundamentals.”

The story behind these pictures is the unusual mixing and matching between those categories, and how that irreverent approach enlivened the resulting looks: Martin wears a romantic broderie anglaise top with bright blue track shorts in a photo Ghesquière says was influenced by David Lynch. Mulholland Drive, by the looks of it. In another image, a color-block windbreaker got paired with flower-printed jeans cut high through the waist and tapered at the ankles ’80s-style. Their pattern was repeated on an overstuffed sofa.

Extrapolating on the high-low concept, a salopette dress in Oshkosh-style stripes came overprinted with interlocking chains that were echoed by the shoulder bag Martin carried, and a sporty puffer vest was cut in black leather that featured the classic LV monogram as its inner lining. It’s all “high” at Louis Vuitton, but this collection had a more low-key day-to-day aspect than Ghesquière’s ambitious runway shows, a casual sensibility that jibes with these shelter-in-place times while retaining the Vuitton polish. And Ghesquière’s pictures? Who wouldn’t want to shelter in that twisted chateau? Or hang out with a character of such insouciant charm as Martin?

The shoot took place at a chateau in the French countryside, and at least some of the images are the designer’s impressionistic takes on movie memories—only Glenn Close’s Sunny von Bulow didn’t wear her ’60s shift over logo-printed athleisure with purple shower slides and a bright pink crossbody bag slung high on her torso.

Continuing to transcend borders of both the world and the imagination, the Spring 2021 campaign from Louis Vuitton Men’s is a joyous explosion of color and possibility. Creative director Virgil Abloh worked with photographer Tim Walker to further develop his international celebration of inclusion and unity.

The campaign continues the exploration of boyhood and fantasy that has characterized Abloh’s last few collections and their campaigns. The motif of clouds from the Fall 2020 campaign has returned, but this time around they float above a fantastical city. Abloh and Walker worked together to develop the visuals for this colorful locale, which seems to be a combination of major cities from around the world, creating an exciting sense of multiculturalism.

Abloh’s youthful protagonists fill this space with larger-than-life energy. They stride, hop, and dance across the city center’s intersection (a potent visual metaphor), embodying the energy of the colors and patterns they wear. Bright reds, pinks, yellows, and blues pop against slick black suiting. Optical Damier prints put a psychedelic spin on the signature pattern of two-tone ska, the Jamaican musical style that was exported to London in the 70’s – where it became emblematic of racial solidarity and unity – and then around the world.

Abloh’s sense for visual codes, and the way he uses it to foster possibility and inclusion, are deft and inspiring. The imagery depicts a dream come true, what happens when a boy who dreams of coming to the big city and connecting with people there actually gets that opportunity.

I strive to employ fashion to reflect and affect ideals of inclusivity, unity, and humanity.

— Virgil Abloh, Creative Director for Louis Vuitton Men’s

Doing just that, the campaign is perhaps the strongest example yet of Abloh’s ability to use the language of fashion to guide us toward imagining a better and more beautiful world. His imagery fills us with a love for humanity and inspires us to get creative and act on it.

Louis Vuitton Men’s Creative Director | Virgil Abloh

Review of Louis Vuitton Men’s Spring 2021 Ad Campaign by Creative Director Virgil Abloh & Photographer Tim Walker.

LOUIS VUITTON X TIM WALKER MEN'S SPRING 2021 AD CAMPAIGN

Kim Jones has been grafting the glamour and finesse of haute couture techniques and textiles onto Christian Dior menswear since he arrived at the house in 2018. The applause for that (from women, as well as men) surely has a lot to do with his upcoming and much talked-about debut at Fendi couture, his first go at a wholly female-focused collection.

All the professional confidence of that heat-generating formula—and his continuing interest in involving artists in the collection—swaggered again through his fall 2021 runway video for Dior Men. It opened with a glittering gilded embroidered coat, worn over what looked to be a military-influenced, star-buttoned suit. In fact, as Jones explained in a call from Paris, his research was based on the ceremonial tail-coated attire required by artists in France when they’re inducted into the Academie des Beaux-Arts in Paris—the buttons are an adaptation from a Christian Dior haute couture dress designed by Marc Bohan in the 1960s. “In fact, we’ve made several of them [the Academie’s coats] for people since I’ve been here,” he said. The crossover from male bespoke to the work of Dior’s embroidery ateliers is a little-known living tradition at this house.

Segue to Jones’s contemporary artist hook-up of the season. This time, it’s with the Scottish-born painter Peter Doig, whose roving background—an upbringing in Trinidad, study in London in the 1980s, success in the ’90s, a move to Canada—is exactly the stuff that brings out the fanboy in Jones: “Peter was at Central Saint Martins with Stephen Jones, and knew all the people I’m obsessed by—Leigh Bowery, Trojan, the London club kids at that time. Stephen introduced us. He really became part of the studio for the collection, and started making things, painting hats, and designing the set, which is based on the speaker stacks he’s collected.” Stephen Jones, Dior’s resident milliner confirms: “Yes, Peter was always hanging out with us fashion-y types at school. Then all of a sudden, unlike us, he went off and became a major international artist.”

A swift blast of art homework on Google (such is the life of a fashion reviewer these days) shows the exactitude of the Doig-Dior reference points. Where there are yellow anoraks, orange coats, and lions; where there are paint-dabby patterns on sweaters—that’s all material replicated from Doig’s oeuvre. “His work is autobiographical. We looked at his paintings of men, of skiers, ice hockey players, and the night sky,” said Jones. “I think he was fascinated by how closely we could replicate his brushwork in textiles and knitwear.” The cheerful shots of citrus color—translated into some of Jones’s subtle merges of casual and luxurious street-wearable outerwear—are the making of the collection.

Check a few of Doig’s original paintings, and the source becomes clear. Spearfishing, a 2013 canvas, has two men in a boat, the artist’s recollection of seeing a man in an orange wetsuit and another in a yellow anorak, in the Caribbean. The green-brown-yellow sweater and the crocheted white skullcap worn by two of the three Black figures in the artist’s Two Trees are re-rendered in the collection. Rain in the Port of Spain is one of Doig’s lion paintings, spiritually significant iconography initially triggered by the sight of lions in the zoo in Trinidad. “The idea comes from seeing depictions of the Rastafarian Lion of Judah on the walls of buildings, galvanized fences, and T-shirts in the Port of Spain,” he once explained. Doig hand-painted a lion on a Dior bowler hat himself; one of the models carried a huge blanket with a Doig lion woven into it.

Spinning cross-cultural references is part of Kim Jones’s modus operandi: The art-collaboration souvenirs presumably pay for themselves as luxury collector’s items. Otherwise, with a fashion-item eye for change, look down. Whether it’s the pomp-and-ceremony aspect of the collection, or its more casual side, the connecting factor is the wider, easier ’90s-tailored trouser. Wherever Jones goes for inspiration—and however neatly he weaves the threads back into the heritage of Christian Dior—his work is always grounded in what men will really want to wear.

Spinning cross-cultural references is part of Kim Jones’s modus operandi: The art-collaboration souvenirs presumably pay for themselves as luxury collector’s items.

While the rest of the world begins winding down, Virgil Abloh continues to deliver as he shares the lookbook for his Louis Vuitton (PARIS:MC.PA +0.07%) Pre-Fall 2021 collection.

The artistic director now introduces an upcoming collection in which he reflects on the new standard, following the second installment of the house's LV2054 lifestyle line earlier this month. Abloh studies the privilege of normalcy and what conforming to a new state of being normal means after 2020, investigating the mundane dress codes of an establishment in progress. 

Tailoring comes in boxy silhouettes, a caban restructured with an asymmetrical monogram leather panel and a peacoat embossed with a reworked company logo around the sleeves, with suits doused in tie-dye galaxy monogram prints. 

Suits with hoodies, zipped jackets and jeans have also been combined, while mid-layers also feature evening wear. Blousons, cardigans and shirts come in a Damier salt print that features a fading and blurred brand motif on a more casual note.

In other news, Kenzo x Kansai Yamamoto collaboration. This campaign is youthful and knows what young people are looking for.

Virgil Abloh studies the luxury of normalcy in a post-2020 society.

The luxury designer brand is currently selling a whole line of sporting goods, from LV-monogrammed dumbbells to an LV-monogrammed jump rope.

And among the offerings is a $10,400 Monogram Kite covered in Louis Vuitton's signature initial print and packed away in a matching monogrammed bag.

'House admirers will appreciate the technical nylon construction featuring an allover Monogram print, along with the embossed Monogram canvas carry case presented in a standout red shade,' it adds, calling the kite a 'playful piece.'

The hefty price tag becomes even more outrageous when one considers that it doesn't include sales tax, which can be as high as $1,000 in some states.

It is unclear how high demand for the kite actually is, and how many Louis Vuitton has made — though there only appears to be one available to buy online. 

The kite actually made it's debut in the brand's Men's Spring-Summer 2020 show in 2019, worn on the backs of models strutting down the runway. 

The show included several different kite designs, including a larger, box-shaped version.

Designer Virgil Abloh appeared to be on a bit of a kite kick, and the invitations that went out could be fashioned into kites by following a set of enclosed directions.

But while designers sometimes give models props and accessories that are just meant to be worn for the show — and are never actually produced — in this case, Louis Vuitton has, in fact, manufactured kites for sale.

In other news, a review of Courrèges ‘Reeditions’ Spring 2021 Ad Campaign by Creative Director Nicolas Di Felice.

Louis Vuitton wants customers to go fly a kite — for $10,400, plus tax.

LOUIS VUITTON OFFERS $10,400 USD MONOGRAM KITE

Louis Vuitton unveils a new campaign by Michael Janssen in celebration of their iconic Capucines bag. The Spring 2021 takes a risky gamble by doubling down on the powerful status of its star – influencer, model, and royal family member Princess Olympia of Greece – but does it pay off?

The film follows Olympia as she spends a casual day in Paris. She listens to vintage records in an elegant apartment, rides her bike over a bridge across the Seine, has lunch at a balcony cafe. Each moment is infused with the casual yet haughty personality which only a royal life of leisure can instill.

The campaign is largely devoid of concept, and its sole marketing tactic seems to be relying on the status of its star. Many fashion houses have wised up to the truth that actual people are not impressed by influencers: they are not relatable; they are not like us; we don’t believe the things they say because we know they are paid to say them. Apparently Louis Vuitton is lagging behind. Not only is Olympia a famous-for-being-famous fashion influencer, but she is also a member of two royal families. She represents and immensely profits off of a decayed political system which was responsible for centuries of imperialism and slavery, and which persists as a symbol of vast inequality. Is this inspiring or admirable?

Part of the reason that this campaign feels so out of touch and disappointing is that we’ve seen the artistic heights of which Nicolas Ghesquière is capable. This is a far cry from the moving portraits of independent and artful Louis Vuitton women we’ve seen in the past. True, the brand’s handbag-focused campaigns like this one are necessarily simpler and image-centric, but they at least have characters with which we can connect and a more genuinely feminist sense of freedom. This one feels remarkably shallow.

If Louis Vuitton is content to sell a static and antiquated image of luxury which consists only of immense wealth and idleness, then this campaign is successful. But if they have any aspirations to create something meaningful, if they want at all to connect with real people, especially the youngest generation, then they need to think long and hard about what kind of person should representing their brand.

In other news, Proenza Schouler Resort 2021 RTW Collection Fashion Show photos from New York Fashion Week (Dec, 2020).

Review of Louis Vuitton Capucines Spring 2021 Ad Campaign by Photographer Michael Janssen with HRH Princess Olympia of Greece.

For the second Louis Vuitton 2054 collection – part of Pre-Spring 2021 – Men’s Artistic Director Virgil Abloh expands his experimentation with functional fashion to a bigger scale.

First launched in 2019 as a luxury lifestyle line devoted to performance and tech, the collection fuses urban- and activewear in a contemporary wardrobe founded in adaptable essentials. This season, LV2054 clarifies its message and extends its reach in a multi-climatic collection derived from methods used in professional skiwear. Realized through hyper-materiality, garments acclimatize to changing weather conditions in the image of skiing: a temperature drop from a mountain top to an upland forest and tranquil tarn.

In other news, the story of Stella McCartney: she became interested in designing clothes as a youth. At the age of 13, McCartney designed her first jacket.

Louis Vuitton Men’s Releases Their Second Luxury Performance Wear Collection Entitled 2054.

For the new Fall Winter 2020 shoes campaign, Louis Vuitton has tapped Korean-born DJ and influencer Peggy Gou. The new Louis Vuitton women's shoe collection showcases iconoclastic fashion, where gender boundaries are increasingly fluid, striking, relaxed, urban or more boyish.

The archival jacquard textile matches the elegant SILHOUETTE ankle boot or the PODIUM sandal, both recognizable from their recurring Monogram flower heel, as well as the more casual LV ARCHLIGHT sneaker, and even the LV BEAUBOURG derby. The Monogram canvas wins acclaim in the CHELSEA version, with boots reflecting a more masculine style. Other, typically hardy models are also infused with these aesthetic codes – such as the LAUREATE, the utterly desirable Desert Boots with a large platform sole, the METROPOLIS, where military inspiration and Monogram playfulness clash, or even the MATADOR. With a large square heel and pointed toes, these geometric, highly contrasting boots echo another classic: the Western Ankle Boot. Available in plain black or silver with a small gold chain and two-tone Monogram strap, or in black and red or black and Monogram canvas. – from Louis Vuitton

In other news, The Personal is The Fashion! Proenza Schouler: Spring 2021 Collection art book in collaboration with Daniel Shea.

A day in the life of Korean DJ and Influencer Peggy Gou.

PEGGY GOU MODELS LOUIS VUITTON FW20 SHOE COLLECTION

Louis Vuitton has unveiled LVxNBA, the National Basketball Association (NBAfirst )'s menswear capsule collection of designs by Virgil Abloh, Louis Vuitton's Creative Director for Men. 

Louis Vuitton has collaborated with Madison Square Garden (MSG) as part of the house's ongoing partnership with the NBA to offer a virtual sale experience shot inside the iconic arena of the New York Knick. The LVxNBA digital debut at MSG, created as a special yet personal virtual experience, is open to the public through a link on the Louis Vuitton homepage.

By merging French craftsmanship with American sports, Abloh produced LVxNBA, a limited line of clothing and accessories that incorporates the logos of the two institutions. The collection adapts the codes of the Men's Artistic Director with the basketball universe's iconography and respects the ideals of relatability and inclusion that are central to his vision at Louis Vuitton. The NBA's visual identity is assimilated into the new Louis Vuitton motifs in the series. Abloh focuses on three aspects of style that are important to the wardrobe of any NBA player: travel, game arrivals, and press conferences.

This collection celebrates the cultural contribution of basketball and its diverse characters, and the idea of relatability as a force of unity.

– Virgil Abloh, Men’s Artistic Director Louis Vuitton

By using drone footage of the clothes, shoes and accessories on show within the arena, Louis Vuitton and MSG developed a unique combination of sport, design and technology to increase that culture. Many who attend the event will explore the collection by navigating through a virtual sale environment around the capsule presentation with the opportunity to display individual items up close in full detail and buy ties. 

Men who admire style fill the sporting world, but players from no league have committed to fashion like those in the NBA. On game day as the stars walk into their stadiums, we see personal expressions ranging from a finely cut custom suit all the way to a casual ensemble pieced together by some of the most expensive brands in the world. These men have a runway at their hands, and if they're not going to use it, they'll be damned!

In other news, Rick Owens' wife Michèle Lamy and Katerina Jebb’s functional serving tray made of a scenographic portrait of Lamy imagined by Jebb.

With Every Game Already Flanked By Fashion, The NBA Teams Up With Louis Vuitton.

LOUIS VUITTON LAUNCHES LV X NBA COLLABORATION WITH NBA ALL-STARS

This season, it would seem that the humble deck of cards is fashion's latest object du jour. Whether part of their gifting assortment like Alexander McQueen and Saint Laurent Rive Droite or the inspiration behind an entire ready-to-wear collection à la Louis Vuitton, playing cards are suddenly an activity designers are getting behind. So how did we get here?

For his Cruise 2021 collection, Louis Vuitton Artistic Director Nicolas Ghesquière claimed that tarots were his favorite card game, explaining to Vogue that it's "because it can be used in many different ways" and that "cards are full of symbols." The heart, club, diamond and spades were a recurring theme throughout, seen on everything from handbags to blown up card motifs on clothes.

The accompanying campaign featuring Léa Seydoux goes even further by depicting a life-size stack of cards in the background while showcasing the brand's monogram interspersed with the four suits of a card deck. (LV fittingly named this collection "Game On.")

"The collection expresses a particular art of living that keeps Louis Vuitton's trunk-making heritage alive," the brand said in a statement. "It's the symbolism of a deck of cards, the traveler's loyal companion, and endless entertainment that cultivates togetherness."

Aha! "Togetherness." A concept that many will agree has taken on a new meaning this year, a time when not everyone can physically be together. As someone who has played more card games in the past few months than in past years combined, I can attest to this sentiment. (Being limited in entertainment options can do that to you.)

No sentiment of "togetherness" is more prevalent than during the holidays, which by its very nature is all about spending time with family. Which probably explains why Alexander McQueen introduced AMQ playing cards as part of its new gifting assortment for the first time. Ditto for Saint Laurent, which sells a $485 deck of cards + game box from its more novelty-driven Rive Droite line.

Meanwhile, a quick browse on shopping sites like Farfetch and SSENSE shows playing card references on everything from Ferragamo ties to Paul Smith cufflinks. McQueen t-shirts, Saint Laurent button-downs and Fendi jackets all incorporate card elements, as well.

To be sure, this is not an entirely new concept. Playing cards have been a source of inspiration for many designers in the past, from Dolce & Gabbana's Spring 2018 "Queen of Hearts" collection to Vivienne Westwood's pack of cards tied to her ongoing climate revolution series. But the timing of their resurgence as the world rethink ideas of entertainment, togetherness and travel make it an intriguing fashion reference as we head into a new year.

Every now and then a bizarre trend emerges that warrants a closer investigation. Last year it was the proliferation of lettuce at Fashion Week, followed by monkeys and monkey-adjacent creatures on the runways.

WHY ARE DESIGNERS OBSESSED WITH PLAYING CARDS?

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