Louis Vuitton SS20 campaign. Photography by Viviane Sassen
It’s no secret the world is becoming a smaller place. With increasing accessibility to travel and digital platforms connecting far-off countries that once were strangers, globalization is a social phenomenon that has not only connected businesses and governments but also the fashion industry. Brands are now championing inclusivity in collection campaigns featuring models from diverse backgrounds and scouting for locations in every corner of the world. Louis Vuitton is the latest to embrace this change with its Men SS20 campaign, “Footprints”.
Louis Vuitton SS20 campaign. Photography by Viviane Sassen
Thematically revolving around “man’s positive impact on the planet”, the collection embodies the unifying factors between men from every walk of life in a celebration of “the formative acts and feelings shared by male youth around the globe, irrespective of culture and creed,” explains the luxury brand’s official statement.
Louis Vuitton SS20 campaign. Photography by Viviane Sassen
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The first set images of in a series of five to be released were photographed in various parts of Morocco and starred young local talent traipsing the beaches, fields, and dunes of Tangier and Chefchaouen in Virgil Abloh’s newest designs, while the following campaigns will feature countries from the remaining continents of the world.
Louis Vuitton SS20 campaign. Photography by Viviane Sassen
Flowers were the stars of the upcoming collection, appearing on bags, coats, and sweatshirts and representing the “naturally occurring metaphor for multiplicity”. Other motifs, such as flying kites, depict a “recurrent notion of boyhood” in an ode to the “universally relatable” experiences that “bind us together in all our diversity across counties, countries, and continents.” Although the SS20 runway show in Paris last June hinted at the focus of the collection when Abloh sent attendees a Louis Vuitton DIY kite-making kit, nothing prepared us for the playful nostalgia found in abundance throughout the official campaign.
Louis Vuitton SS20 campaign. Photography by Viviane Sassen
Deciding to build on every collection since he first began his stewardship as menswear creative director a year ago, Abloh previously told Vogue: “I decided I’m not shifting gears every season—I saw that as a potential trap before I started. I stand for diversity and the idea that luxury can be something wider in this era. So I’m going to continue down that line, and continue this feeling of the whole freedom of being a child, still learning.” As Abloh embarks on a mission to break barriers from within the industry, it’s clear the future of Louis Vuitton lies in embracing the heterogeneity of a world that continues to become smaller with each new fashion season.
Louis Vuitton SS20 campaign. Photography by Viviane Sassen
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