Surfs Up at Louis Vuitton

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The set for Louis Vuitton’s Spring Summer 2027 menswear show was a giant wave cresting over a sandy runway — the kind of pipe that big wave surfers dream of — out of which marched a stream of neutral and pastel-hued dandies in what may just be one of designer Pharrell Williams’s most successful collections to date.

“The wave is the great equalizer,” said the show notes. “On coasts around the world, the same impulse draws humans towards the tide: towards the monumental force of water, and the rebalancing rhythm of the ride. Guided by surfing as a worldwide way of life that transcends culture and creed, the Louis Vuitton Spring-Summer 2027 Men’s Collection embraces the sea and shore as spaces of universal human belonging. Water courses through the show as a representation of life, opportunity and connection to nature. As the moon – the wavemaker – appears on the Parisian evening sky, the collection emerges from a great wave emblematic of the equilibrium that unites the surfing community and the world it navigates.”

Hand-spun textures and sea-centric embellishments are present throughout the collection as wet-suits are paired with classic tailoring in traditional wool and performance tech fabrics. Acid colors and checkerboard motifs are inspired by surf culture and skateboarding, which the show notes describe as “a formative and enduring influence for [Pharrell].”

At times, the homage to these subcultures was so complete as to feel like little more that a high a high-fashion dupe — as in the case of the sneakers that looked almost exactly like Vans and the boots that might as well have been a collaboration with Ugg — but the clothes offered enough interest, newness, and specialness to overcome the creative shortcomings of much of the footwear. And in a season when brands like Prada are being praised for going all-in on clothes so tight no one over the age of 22 could ever hope to fit into them, it’s nice to see Williams embracing a looser, more laid back, wearable, and, frankly, more appealing silhouette. And just more beautiful clothes overall.

Check out the rest of the collection below.