Louis Vuitton Pre-Fall 2024 Menswear Collection

ENERGY-CONVEYERS / Pre-Fall 2024 Men’s Collection

From Hawaii to Hong Kong, the collection illustrates the connective power of travel through nautical themes. The codes of surfing and tropical floral prints celebrate a wardrobe embraced across continents. Following  on from the idea of the conduit that underpinned Pharrell Williams’ debut collection for Louis Vuitton – from VA to Paris – the proposal reflects on the multicultural influences present in familiar wardrobe staples, and their evolution as they travel around the world. Clothes are energy-conveyers: a garment associated with the nature-centric, bohemian lifestyle of surfing has the power to create the energy of the beaches of Hawaii for a wearer in the urban environment of Hong Kong SAR.

THE AVENUE OF STARS / The show

Set under the moonlight and constellations of the night sky, the Louis Vuitton Pre-Fall 2024 Men’s Collection Show unfolds along the Avenue of Stars on Victoria Harbour. Located along the panoramic waterfront of Tsim Sha Tsui, the 440-metre promenade was established in 1982 and reopened in 2004 as a monument to the stars of Hong Kong’s film industry. Victoria Harbour is noted as an epicentre of cultural exchange,  and has welcomed seafarers from around the world since the fifteenth century. Being close to the water is a constant theme and grounding force for Pharrell Williams, who grew up in Virginia Beach. The port serves as a symbol of the mind-expanding power of travel.

CELESTIAL NAVIGATION / The sailor

The dandy silhouette takes shape in the image of the sailor’s uniform expressed in navy or maritime striped  double-breasted suits with flared trousers or shorts. Pea and double-breasted naval coats are adorned with pearls buttons featured on garments throughout. Stripe motifs are recreated in miniature strings of pearls encrusted on a double-breasted black coat and shorts. Sailor’s suits in chambray embed a nautical  vocabulary within the grammar of Pharrell Williams. Elsewhere, this transition is expressed in a shell-embroidered varsity jacket with a sailor’s collar that zips into a hoodie, and in sweats trimmed with ship rope. The tattoos of seafarers morph with shells in graphics and crests.

NEPTUNE / The fisherman

Patterns familiar to sailors are reimagined with unexpected elements. A new infinity LV logo latticed like net appears on a knitted cardigan, the jacquard of a suit and shorts, and the nylon sleeves of a mixed-material leather jacket. Elsewhere, indigo and washed-black denim shorts and shirts are bleached in the same  latticing interpreted in workwear. Neptune – the Roman god of the seas and freshwater – appears in a pattern inspired by floral shirts typical of Hawaii, as well as a denim bomber jacket embellished with pearls and crystals, a nod to the lakes and fishermen of Virginia.

RIDING WAVES / The surfer

The rebellious freedom and community-oriented mindset of skateboarding – a fundamental influence for Pharrell Williams – is intrinsically connected to surf culture. Surfers look to the size of the moon to determine the scale of the tidal wave. During a full moon, the gravitational pull creates higher lunar tides that intensify the waves. The relationship wave-riders have with the moon and the sea illustrates the nature centric, harmonious heart of the surf culture of Hawaii, adopted by likeminded humans around the world. Inspired by this attitude, the surfer wardrobe materialises as scuba suits adorned with beaded logos, linen tailoring and tropical floral prints with motifs of surfers. Shoes and hats woven in raffia embody the same feeling, alongside braided beach bracelets and charm jewellery crafted from wooden beads and enamel flowers.

ALOHA / Artworks

Ten patterns created in the Louis Vuitton studio pay homage to the tropical flower shirt, typical of Hawaii. An example of the cultural connectivity clothes can carry, the Hawaiian design was originally crafted using  Japanese cloth, and its early success has been linked to the trade of a local Hawaiian-Chinese store owner. Today, the shirt energises wearers around the world, imbuing them with the eternal youth and sun-drenched  vibrations of Hawaiian mentality. The collection’s patterns are an ode to this mindset, expressed in prints, jacquards and embellishments across shirts, shorts, suits and accessories. The floral motifs take three-dimensional form in a suede shirt and shorts with hand-crafted leather hibiscus and logo appliqué.

FOOTPRINTS / Shoes

The LV Dandy loafer embraces its nautical expression in two-tone leather and mono-colour suede editions – some adorned with tropical floral illustrations or locks in Swarovski crystals and gold – along with a magnified LV Checker leather derby with military laces. A surf-inspired LV Trainer is crafted in raffia and appears alongside a Damier-stitch multicolour edition of the LV Maxi Trainer and the LV Space Lander, a new lightweight rubber sneaker with a Damier denim upper and elastic slip-on band. The shoe proposal expands with the LV Martial Arts slip-on in Damier-embossed suede or leather, the LV Venice slide in the Damier Héritage chaine et trame texture, and fisherman’s sandals with interlacing padded leather straps and square buckles.

COBRA / The 3D-printed slip-on

Representing a new advancement in shoe-making, the LV COBRA is a new slip-on created with revolutionary 3D-printing technology. A breakthrough in material innovation of mixed-texture printing, it allows a seamless blend between textured and smooth materials within a single shoe. The technology renders the emblematic LV Monogram flower logo with unprecedented detail a highly tactile and entirely flexible printed TPU form,  imitating the feeling of fabric. With no assembly, stitching, or gluing involved in its production process, the LV COBRA emerges as a truly zero-waste design. It appears in black and cream editions.

CARGO / Bags

The energies of sailing and surfing reinvigorate the bag icons of the Maison. The new Surfing Monogram – inspired by Hawaiian scenery – appears in four different colours. Bags crafted in yellow Damier Scuba Leather incorporate black aqua zips. The Damier Denim 3D line evolves the pattern across Speedy editions and other icons with pearl-adorned zip pullers. The magnified chaine et trame of the Damier Heritage captures the naval essence of the collection in nautical blue and optical white with orange details. A tote bag and a Keepall 25 are hand-woven in raffia.

LV SUPER VISION / Sunglasses

The Super Vision sunglasses are crafted in super-light titanium drawing from the materials of ships, as well as in light or dark seasoned wood as a nod to the nature-centric energy of the surf wardrobe. They appear in round, pilot and sport editions. Sunglasses adorned with tropical floral motifs materialise in three graphic shapes.

SOUVENIRS / Accessories

Naval accessories manifest as scuba and denim berets, chambray caps, sailor-bucket hats, and pearl-embroidered cotton beanies. Solid silver seafarer’s necklaces are forged with beads and flower clasps, while silver-effect  necklaces and earrings are embellished with flower pendants. Hats and baseballs caps in crochet, raffia and prints inspired by tropical scenery convey a surfer energy, which is further cemented by braided cotton  bracelets and jewellery crafted from wooden beads, enamel flowers and pearls. A necklace is finished with ukulele pendants and a ukulele pick. Resort accessories include a beach towel and cushion.

HUMAN RELATIONS / Cast

The Louis Vuitton Pre-Fall 2024 Men’s Show is personified by a cast of dynamic locals, members of the Hawaiian surfer community, and friends from around the globe.

AIRPLANE TICKETS / Soundtrack

The soundtrack for the Louis Vuitton Pre-Fall 2024 Men’s Show features an original composition by Pharrell Williams x Swae Lee x Rauw Alejandro, entitled “Airplane Tickets”, performed live by fifty ukulele players.

Credits: © Courtesy of Louis Vuitton Italia