September 30, 2022 |
After Virgil Abloh’s untimely death the creative reigns of Off-White have passed to his long time collaborator Ib Kamara. This was his first show as art and image director and he chose to honour Virgil’s blue sky thinking with a show dedicated to the colour which he intends to make a signature of the brand.
“Blue is otherworldly. It’s alien, but it’s human. It’s explorative. It’s a vulnerable colour,” Kamara said. His mission is to continue Abloh’s legacy of community spirit and his inclusive vision. His desire, he said, was to “continue the dream”. He collaborated with afro-punk band Tshegue on the soundtrack, and choreographer Nicolas Huchard created a dance performance to accompany the show. A film, projected on a cube at the centre of the catwalk, showed models in a heavenly sky, posing by a series of open doors. It reflected the show’s theme of hope said Kamara. “Hope is opening doors, and that is something Virgil did beautifully until the very end.” All the models were new faces, signifying a fresh start.
They walked on an Off-White blue catwalk, in clothes that took the body – its fragility or strength – as inspiration. Tailoring had shadow prints of skeletons front and back, a woman’s torso was applied onto a jacket in white tailor’s stitch. The patterns on knots described muscle groups and jumpsuits had porthole cut outs to reveal the midriff. Elsewhere, slinky bodycon tube dresses glorified the body beautiful.
Photography courtesy of Off-White.
