Virgil Abloh, mainly known for the start of the streetwear, luxury brand called Off-White rose to fame through A-lister connections and gaining recognition and attention from other luxury brand businessmen alike. He began as an intern at Fendi, which just so happened to be where A-lister rapper and now fashion designer, Kanye West also was. Shortly after their internship, they went ahead and began working together to establish their brands. With Kanye’s recognition and presence around the world, Abloh caught the attention of the CEO of Louis Vuitton Michael Burke, in addition to his presence with the Fendi brand. From here, he had the opportunity to show off more of his designs and apparel, after screen printing shirts for celebrities Kanye West and Jay-Z for the “Watch the Throne” album released in 2011. After that bit of success, Abloh went on to establish his own brand in 2013 called Off-White, only to really become one of the most sought after designers as of 2018 and today.
Abloh’s most iconic designs to his brand, includes a four-way arrow that connects in the middle. This particular logo is iconically found on the back of his denim jackets, on keychains, his sneakers, and handbags he produces. Although this logo isn’t seen on all of his work, anything with this logo is an immediate “flex” or way of showing off that his wearer is rocking an luxury streetwear brand.
He is also known for his usage of quotes and associating them to the product. For instance, his scarf design will literally say “SCARF” on it, or his boots for women will say “FOR WALKING” directly on it. He believes that this creates an element of humor but also fashion. This is very avant-garde for our era, and it changes the seriousness of luxury brands, and it turns it into artistic humor–which makes it so appealing to the younger generations. Not to mention, his followers are predominantly wealthy Asians–and they always had an eye for clothes with a Western twist or writing on it, in order to “fit in” or feel like they too can rock these luxury brands like their Caucasian counterparts.
All in all, Virgil Abloh continues to be praised for his relevant works, and is still the Creative Director for Louis Vuitton–in addition to taking care of his own brand that’s associated with LVMH brands. In his upcoming work, we should expect to see holes in more of his designs, the way his friend Kanye West would probably love it, and more of his iconic arrows and quotations.
Iconic Virgil Abloh Quotes
“I love counterfeits, it’s the best feedback. It’s better than a great review in Vogue. If it’s working to a point where someone else can profit […] it’s really working.”
“The world moves as fast as Instagram scrolls.”
“What I’m trying to do is between Supreme and Celine”
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