‘Visionary fashion designer Virgil Abloh has died at the age of 41 | News of the fashion industry
Top fashion designer Virgil Abloh, Louis Vuitton’s leading fashion designer, died Sunday Sunday at the age of 41 from cancer, French fashion designer LVMH has announced.
Abloh, the son of an American-born Ghanaian immigrant who became a well-known figure in Black fashion, also worked as a DJ and artist and has been living in Vuitton since March 2018. He also developed the Italian high-end Off-White clothing, as well. LVMH took a 60% stake earlier this year, and has already teamed up with rapper and fashion designer Ye, formerly known as Kanye West.
“We are all shocked by this horrible news,” LVMH director Bernard Arnault said in a statement.
“Virgil was not a brilliant, visionary creator, and a man of extraordinary size and complexity.”
Born in 1980 near Chicago, Abloh and his sister grew up in Rockford, Illinois. According to the history of Vogue magazine 2018, his mother Eunice Abloh, a tailor, taught him the basics of the arts at an early age.
After graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, he completed a master’s degree in architecture at the Illinois Institute of Technology.
Abloh and Ye became students at Fendi in Rome, and by 2010, Abloh was working as a director at Ye’s creative agency, Donda. He also made a cover of Yeezus and My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.
Her arrival at LVMH in 2018 marked the wedding between streetwear and high fashion based on graffiti, hip hop and skateboard culture.
The producer responded to the environmental and social pressures of his work with Louis Vuitton, with anti-apartheid and anti-gay messages at his January exhibition in Paris.
Abloh said earlier this year he planned to use his partnership with LVMH to “expand opportunities for diversity and promote justice and inclusion in the industries we operate”.
Abloh’s homage comes from a variety of fashionistas and beyond.
“You recently left us Virgil,” said Nine Garcia, a former editor of Elle magazine. “Your creativity, your unwavering passion, your love of design, your excellent workmanship and your generous generosity created an environment that refutes old misconceptions about how fashion should lead to dialogue with other disciplines. anu. “
Former producer Donatella Versace said she was “speechless” over Abloh’s death.
“The world has lost a fashion expert,” she said. “A new maker. A history maker. I think of all your loved ones on this sad day. Love, Donatella.”
Abloh had more followers than fashion and was a well-known brand.
British actor Idris Elba wrote on Twitter: “Soon Virgil. You will need a worldly man.”
French actor Omar Sy, a well-known Netflix player in Lupine, tweeted: “Relax in Power Virgil.”
Abloh is survived by his wife, Shannon, his children Lowe and Gray, his sister, Edwina, and his parents, Nee and Eunice.
“For more than two years, Virgil has been battling a rare form of cancer, aggressive, angiosarcoma of the heart,” said a message posted on his Instagram account, announcing his death. “She has chosen to endure her war in secret since she was found in 2019, receiving a lot of critical support, while she was supporting a number of important organizations involved in fashion, art, and culture.”
