THE FUTURE IS NOW

Eight years after his appointment as creative director of womenswear at Louis Vuitton, Nicolas Ghesquière continues to explore the intersection of functionality and novelty in fashion. One of the most influential and admired designers in the industry, his meticulous approach celebrates craftsmanship and innovation.

- Sara Hernando

For most of his career, Nicolas Ghesquière has been thinking and fantasising about the future. In the first months of 2020, it arrived, in the form of an almost apocalyptic pandemic. Under these unprecedented circumstances, the French designer showcased the spring/summer 2021 collection, last October, in the department store of La Samaritaine in Paris. At the 1869 building owned by the LVMH group, there were 200 in-person guests and 360 cameras, which beamed the show globally.

Ghesquière’s approach to design analyses the space between femininity and masculinity, and responds to the needs of a current society that demands more social and ethical involvement from the industry. “Those who think they will be able to go back to work as they did before will not last long in this industry. The public’s expectations are very high,” he notes.

After 15 years as creative director at Balenciaga, a label that he brought back to the collective imagination, he succeeded Marc Jacobs at Louis Vuitton in 2013, bringing with him a razor-sharp aesthetic and an extraordinary sensitivity to predict the present and future needs of the women he dresses.

Sara Hernando: The spring/summer 2021 collection was presented last October at the La Samaritaine fashion department store in Paris. Why did you decide to move the show from the Louvre, where it’s always held?