How do you sum up a fashion show that seeks to represent the entire world? Pharrell Williams gave it a shot following yet another supernova spectacle for Louis Vuitton Men’s, held on the grounds of the UNESCO headquarters in Paris . “It was an homage,” he said, “to human beings.” Cue slightly nervous laughter, from the small press gaggle and from the LV creative director himself.
Pharrell knows how to go big in all aspects of his life and work, but this was a message so hugely universal that you couldn’t help but find it daunting. Still, if anyone can pull off fashion’s “We Are the World” moment, it’s Pharrell. The production began in typical Louis Vuitton fashion, with a pre-show hangout among Pharrell’s rainbow coalition of famous friends and collaborators.
Under the flags of all nations, Central Cee and Sabrina Carpenter made small talk while Colman Domingo and Michael Fassbender posed for photos in their new LV duds. All 7-foot-4 of Victor Wembanyana loomed over the proceedings, like Atlas next to a steel sculpture of the globe. As the sun poked through a curtain of rain clouds, it soon became apparent how Pharrell had organised his homage: in a spectrum of skin tones paired with matching monochrome clothing.
“From black to dark brown to brown to light brown to beige, a little bit of gray in there. Then we got to light beige, and then finally to white,” said Pharrell of the lineup. “I don’t know if you guys saw that,” he added.
It was hard .
