Understanding the Impact of Virgil Abloh
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Respect, It’s a loaded word. Something that we all yearn for, constantly trying to prove ourselves to others and show that we belong. Whether it’s professionally or socially, respect is the driving force for why we wear certain clothes or listen to specific music, and respect is exactly what Virgil Abloh earned in the world of fashion.
On November 28th Virgil Abloh passed away from cancer at the age of 41. Abloh was, in his own words, a “maker”. A true modern Renaissance man who trailblazed his way through fashion, music, design, and art. He was, in many people’s eyes, the face of a movement. Born in a town just west of Chicago, Abloh went to college for civil engineering and earned a master’s degree in architecture. His true love however was in music, fashion, and design. During college, Abloh began designing t-shirts on the side and started getting involved in the hip-hop scene in Chicago. His interests finally culminated in a position on Chicago rapper Kanye West’s design team in 2009, when West signed a sneaker deal with luxury giant Louis Vuitton.
Abloh was all of a sudden surrounded by the brands and people he had admired for so long. He and the rest of Kanye’s design team, the members of which included Don-C the now legendary owner and creator of streetwear brand Just Don, helped to create and foster what was the first true collaboration between a high-end luxury brand and a hip-hop artist. Although his goal of bridging hip-hop and high-end fashion was realized to a degree, Abloh did not stop there. He soon created his own brands, Been Trill and later Pyrex Vision, both brands were streetwear staples in the early 2010s and could be found being styled and admired on fashion Pinterest and Instagram accounts. His trademark brand however would be Off-White, a deceptively simple label that reworked and reimagined classic streetwear garments like hoodies and T-shirts.
With Off-White, Abloh skyrocketed to streetwear stardom. Abloh became the face of a growing movement that saw streetwear usurp the importance and prominence of “high-end fashion”. Together with other brands such as Supreme and Palace, streetwear took over not just the fashion world, but pop culture as a whole. With Off-White, Abloh soon began working with Nike, where his sneaker collection dubbed “The Ten” broke the internet. In a partnership that helped to birth the now collab-crazed landscape of fashion, Abloh’s take on classic shoes such as the Air Jordan 1 and Nike Blazer resulted in a seemingly endless stream of “influencers” posting a picture in a pair of cream-colored (one could even call them, wait for it...off-white) Nikes adorned with zip-ties and quotation marks.
While his designs and originality have been contested, to say the least, Abloh fought and clawed his way to the top of the fashion world, passing the brands and companies he grew up idolizing. Abloh’s success made streetwear’s place in fashion history undeniable, and in 2018 Abloh cemented his own name in the history books when he was appointed as artistic director of Louis Vuitton menswear. Abloh became the first black person ever to hold the position at LV.
Abloh helped to bring his love of hip-hop and streetwear to the forefront of the fashion world. While fashion shows have historically been attended by wealthy white people decked out in like 3 animals worth of fur and leather, Abloh’s success saw the likes of athletes, rappers, and artists attending his shows.
Whether you own 10 Off-White hoodies, or your sorority just copied his design for a pair of sweatpants, Virgil’s lasting impact on the world of fashion is undeniable. His ascension from a college student with no formal training in fashion design to one of the forefathers of modern “hypebeast” culture has the makings of a movie. Abloh’s success as a black designer has helped to pave the way for future creatives who have traditionally been ignored by European-based fashion houses and media outlets.
Abloh’s legacy is not measured in the number of celebrities who wore his designs, or the amount his garments are being resold for. Rather, his legacy is breaking through the walls and institutions that separated so many people from achieving their dreams.
Rest In Peace Virgil Abloh.