Introducing Louis Vuitton's pre-fall collection, design director Julie de Libran explained that its genesis was an exhibit of Louise Bourgeois' last fabric works in Venice. De Libran went on to reference the 1920's and thirties, les garconnes, and Art Deco, calling the lineup a "liberated wardrobe for a woman who goes out to conquer the world." That's a lot to live up to, but the clothes shown at LVMH's 57th Street Magic Room measured up to their billing. That's assuming, of course, that the LV woman's bank account is as liberated as she is—these clothes are seriously luxe. Of particular note was an inventive fur-collared coat that combined navy shearling and woven striped wool reminiscent of Bourgeois' textiles. The prints on jersey wrap dresses, meanwhile, evoked the style of the Polish painter Tamara de Lempicka. And you could see shades of Chanel's Deauville in the tweeds used for a skirtsuit and an elongated pantsuit.
Despite the decades separating this collection's inspiration and the 1970's of the Spring Vuitton show, you could make connections—the twenties and thirties, of course, influenced the Me Decade. A striped sequin sack dress with a drawstring waist glittered a little less brightly than Marc Jacobs' opulent party frocks did, but there was plenty of razzle-dazzle in a flapper dress dripping with beads.
