The Louis Vuitton Men’s SS26 show opens with a conversation between architecture, sound, and clothing. Pharrell Williams works alongside Studio Mumbai to create a collection informed by India’s materials and everyday textures. The Centre Pompidou houses the set, designed by architect Bijoy Jain as a physical version of Snakes and Ladders, a game of chance that mirrors the collection’s shifts in mood and structure.
Williams interprets Indian dressing not through citation, but through response. He focuses on cloth, construction, and how textiles shift with use and light. Sun-faded tailoring and worn textures bring in the atmosphere of place. Checks and stripes cross over each other, and trompe l’oeil details reframe pattern as illusion.
Colours respond to fabric instead of dictating it. Purple steps in for black. Other hues fade into quieter versions, like garments exposed to constant sunlight.
Waistcoats, jackets, and shirts sit lightly over shorts and trousers. The outline remains relaxed but precise. Hiking references come through in outerwear, shell jackets and blousons rendered in soft textures and traditional motifs. Boots carry the same sense of polish and wear as the tailoring they accompany.
Denim takes a new form. The usual blue steps aside for a coffee-brown tone, created through woven colour instead of dye. This lets white threads emerge over time. Details like aged-gold fastenings and VVN leather loops root the pieces in Louis Vuitton’s codes for bag construction.
Accessories keep pushing the texture forward. Speedy P9 bags appear in soft leather, faded-pastel ostrich, scarf prints, and a tree-of-life carpet weave. The LV BUTTERSOFT Sneaker stands out with its supple construction and detailed surface. A Nil M bag debuts in silk-touch ostrich. Deep green and deep blue crocodile cover trunks, workwear bags, and mini shoppers, some encrusted with semi-precious stones or finished with woven techniques borrowed from antique carpets and embroidery.
Shoes and jewellery follow a similar rhythm. Lace-ups come without a fixed left or right side. Hiking boots feature The Darjeeling Limited motif. Flip-flops stretch into fuller volumes. Silver bangles, ankle bracelets, and filigree-heavy pieces anchor the jewellery, with finishes in aged gold and stones set by hand.
Socks sparkle with lace and crystal. Cricket-style neckties and worn-in hats add quiet context. Belts feature sculpted frog buckles or chain links scattered with small stones. These elements rely on wear, not shine.
Sound scores the collection’s rhythm. Pharrell Williams writes and produces the full soundtrack. Voices of Fire and l’Orchestre du Pont Neuf perform his compositions. The music includes “Miracle Worker,” co-produced with Bishop Ezekiel Williams and J. Drew Sheard. A. R. Rahman joins with “Yaara Punjabi,” followed by Clipse with “So Be It Pt. II.” The show closes on “Get Right,” a track by Doechii and Tyler, the Creator. Each piece adds another layer to a show built on contrast, rhythm, and a tactile sense of time.
