Louis Vuitton S/S 2018

Mood board: On an agonisingly hot day in Paris – the warmest the city has ever been in a century we were told – men’s artistic director of Louis Vuitton, Kim Jones sent out an energetic collection inspired by the luxurious pursuit of island-hopping. Referring to the German author Judith Schalansky’s 2009 Atlas of Remote Islands: Fifty Islands I Have Not Visited and Never Will, Jones – a well seasoned traveller himself, was amused that he had been to most of the places it listed. His S/S 2018 collection is entitled ‘Archipelago’ and took on a bricolage, land to sand to street look that embodied the very essence of moving from place to place. At the show, the musician Drake premiered a song called Signs that was inspired by the collection.

Best in show: Vuitton, as is well documented, has its heritage in travel and so the sense of voyage is more extreme for the coming season. Imagine a trunk rolling through sand and being taken off small boats, jumping from surf to sand. The island state of Hawaii was a major source of inspiration, its signature short-sleeve floral shirts were overlaid with matching print organza and intarsia knits of exotic foliage worn layered. The collection is full of hybrids and juxtapositions, built around combining different elements from myriad places. Plus windsurfing! Climbing! Trekking! And hiking! Tailoring is presented in two shades of mohair, split down the centre. Other looks contrasted surf leggings and scuba tops with suiting and a new graphic logo treatment of the Louis Vuitton logo in a 90s surf wear style.  
 
Finishing touches: Sportswear and sports inspired clothing has been a staple of menswear for some time, arguably a hangover from Jones’ influential eponymous line that he showed between 2003-2008. Debuting for S/S 2018 is a new technical line of clothing called ‘Monogram Outdoor’, which mixes canvas with sports webbing, scuba zips, cording and hardware.