Author: VOG

The V&A has been behind countless blockbuster fashion exhibitions over the years, from the 2015 Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty retrospective (which started life at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York), to 2024’s first-of-its-kind Gabrielle Chanel. Fashion Manifesto extravaganza. It makes sense, then, that the London museum is continuing to level up its fashion offering, by transforming its permanent Fashion Gallery at its main South Kensington site.“Fashion has always been integral to the story of the V&A, and since the 1970s, the museum has had a rolling programme of temporary fashion exhibitions which have led the way in contemporary…

It’s almost as if now we are unable — or uninterested — in taking in the big picture. The quick hits of discussing fashion based on internet talking points du jour make for entertaining social media discourse, but calling anything and everything a ‘recession indicator’ or, to look at last week’s column, a case of ‘nacho reheating’ flattens much of the cultural and historical context attached to fashion. Take the case of peplums — we could call them a recession indicator to be funny, surely, but they actually tend to come back in style after moments of crisis (one of…

First, it was trousers — low-rise and tight, or high-rise and baggy? Then, it was socks — ankle or crew? Now, another generational style divide is emerging, this time in the gym. On TikTok, a quiet fashion skirmish is playing out in activewear, with Gen Z increasingly side-eyeing the ultra-fitted sets that defined millennial workout style.In a series of viral videos using a popular ‘approved’ audio clip, users rate their gym outfits. And the verdict is clear: for many younger creators, the once-coveted tight-on-tight silhouette is starting to feel outdated, “middle school” even.Search data suggests this shift is more than…

At the halfway point of Shanghai Fashion Week on Thursday, designer Xu Zhi held a large-scale 10-year anniversary show, with a boho chic collection that riffed on the brand’s origins, featuring a reissue of the tasseled, tiered gowns from his first collection in 2015.Zhi launched his brand from London, and found success quickly. “Ten years ago, I’d just graduated from Central Saint Martins and launched my brand immediately. I was one of the lucky ones,” the designer says. “My first season, I was picked up by Dover Street Market, Opening Ceremony and Lane Crawford. In 2016, I was nominated for…

Francesca Amfitheatrof is exiting Louis Vuitton after seven years as artistic director of jewellery and watches, the house confirmed on Thursday.“After a successful collaboration of seven years on the creation of jewellery and high jewellery collections, Louis Vuitton and Francesca Amfitheatrof have mutually decided to separate ways. With her remarkable talent and limitless creativity, Amfitheatrof has undoubtedly left an indelible impression on the legacy of jewellery at Louis Vuitton,” the company said in a statement.“I am incredibly grateful to have been given the opportunity to create the jewellery and high jewellery collections for Louis Vuitton. After seven wonderful and intense…

During the pandemic, Cadwallader chose to direct a series of fashion films in lieu of shows. Mugler also switched to a see-now, buy-now approach, meaning the collections were available to buy at the same time the films went live. Mugler’s first IRL show post-pandemic took place in January 2023 at Paris’s La Villette park outside of the fashion calendar. The show carried over the cinematic feel of the films with the models, including Ziwe, Arca, Anok Yai, Paloma Elsesser and Debra Shaw, being followed by a camera while walking on the runway.The brand followed the same strategy until SS25, when…

Miguel Castro Freitas has stayed behind the scenes in fashion, but his new job will bring him into the spotlight. The Portuguese, Paris-based designer was appointed creative director of Mugler on Tuesday, succeeding Casey Cadwallader, who exited after a seven-year tenure. He was most recently creative director for the Max Mara-owned brand Sportmax from the Spring/Summer 2021 to 2024 seasons.Castro Freitas was born in a small town called Santarém, near Lisbon. After graduating with a BA at Central Saint Martins in womenswear fashion design in 2004, he started his career at Dior under John Galliano, specialising in haute couture and…

Loewe sales went from approximately €230 million in 2014, according to Morgan Stanley estimates, to between €1.5 billion and €2 billion in 2024, according to estimates by Bernstein analyst Luca Solca. Lyst ranked Loewe in the top five hottest brands each quarter of 2024 (it ranked first in Q2). And, in its 2024 earnings statement, LVMH said Loewe was “buoyed by growing brand awareness and the bold creativity of its collections”.McCollough and Hernandez’s Proenza Schouler was better known for its New York cool-girl clients, including Chloë Sevigny and Moda Operandi founder Lauren Santo Domingo. While perhaps less esoteric than Anderson’s…

“The Moncler team is very organised,” said model Neelam Kaur Gill, who walked the show and had also taken part in Moncler’s Genius event in Shanghai last October. “They had all kinds of changes of clothes for us backstage to make sure we stayed dry and also those little electric hand warmers. I had them in my gloves and in my boots while I walked the show. This is my second time walking for Moncler, and the experience is always epic and unforgettable.”As the teams put the finishing touches on that epic experience on Friday night, guests including the aforementioned…

For years, authenticity has ruled the marketing playbook. Brands scrambled to appear real, relatable and down to earth; leveraging influencer culture, behind-the-scenes content and raw, unfiltered storytelling to connect with consumers. But in 2025, relatability has reached a breaking point.Take the ‘paparazzi campaign’ trend, once a clever marketing tactic, which has become formulaic. Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta, Moschino and Jimmy Choo have all staged ‘candid’ celebrity moments in recent years, later repurposing them as advertisements. “The thing is, we now see right through this,” wrote Vogue’s José Criales-Unzueta, reflecting a growing audience fatigue.