Could high school–aged Virgil Abloh have foreseen the things he’s creating and the life he’s leading today? “The answer is no, but I’m equally not surprised; I was doing the exact same thing I’m doing now, just on a super-small scale,” he explained during a walk-through of Off-White’s women’s pre-collection, which bears the title Do You Cheer?
The looks had just been shot in a Paris sports club, where a local team that plays American football flexed their glutes while youthful models portrayed an Off-White melting pot of student style. Abloh said he has been thinking about his own high school experience as he’s begun preparing for his design exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago in June. He found old notebooks full of sketches and recalls never feeling boxed into a clique (“I could freely sit at any lunch table”). These days, Off-White is among the industry’s most influential brands: Teens want ladylike bags and boomers are showing their relevance in luxury streetwear. Abloh, who has no shortage of other commitments, stayed within a familiar zone, iterating just enough to maintain a degree of topical interest.
Logo pennant sweaters, coordinated sweatsuits, and pleated cheerleader-style skirts corresponded most directly to the story line, whereas dressier suits, embroidered denim, and floral pajamas were among the pieces that could be interpreted as necessary. “It’s DIY, make the look yourself,” said the designer. This was his approach with the new statement bag; its formal shape and swiveling hardware contrasted by graffiti tags and scrawls that put a self-referential (Cash Inside) spin on Stephen Sprouse’s collectible collaboration for Louis Vuitton. Another version, covered in optical cubes, nodded to the monogram of a brand whose name rhymes with toy card.
Still, surface treatments were generally well developed, whether the hand-beaded varsity patches, the quilted logo on the back of down jackets, or the aforementioned cube pattern in faux fur. Would you have guessed the fringed footwear and bags descended from cheerleader pom-poms? Appearing on the runway of the Off-White men’s show, exactly as shown here with floral catsuits or reconstructed shirtdresses, they shouted out their frivolity—even more so than the For Walking boots, which will soon be featured in the Costume Institute’s “Camp: Notes on Fashion” exhibition. Between this collection and his sophomore effort for Louis Vuitton, Abloh is tapping into symbols that are distinctly American. He’s making the country cool again, or something like that.
