The Lack of Transparency in the Fashion Industry
On Jan. 21, Virgil Abloh—Louis Vuitton’s first black creative director—released his first campaign. The three-phase campaign focuses on “boyhood, not menswear,” according to Abloh, capturing different stages from infancy to adulthood. The campaign is vibrant, authentic and establishes Abloh’s intent for his position as creative director.
The first image from the collection that caught my eye was of the visibly dark black 3-year-old who is dressed in an oversized, unlikely color-matching, loud sweater. What I noticed first about the image was the color of the black boy’s skin. It was nothing like I’ve ever seen before so casually in a campaign for any high fashion brand.
Noticing this, I quickly searched to see how news sources were discussing Abloh’s opposition to the fashion industry’s typical white-washed ideal of beauty and appeal. However, I think I expected too much out of what I have recently considered a transforming, progressive fashion industry.
Sources like Teen Vogue, Vogue and the Singapore Tatler all featured the same exact picture above. However, the headlines addressed the cuteness and innocence of the child, ultimately ignoring the most essential part — the color of the child’s skin. Especially, Teen Vogue’s headline, “Virgil Abloh's First Louis Vuitton Campaign Stars a Really Cute Toddler,” was a direct aim at the child, acknowledging that he looks significantly different from the other white toddlers featured in the campaign.
It was clear that all of the authors easily danced around the idea of pointing out the child’s darker skin color. In an industry that is known for lightening darker skin, Abloh’s selection of this specific black toddler shows how he is going against conventional standards of beauty.
These sources should’ve and could’ve easily addressed that.
Teen Vogue, Vogue and the Singapore Tatler all have influential platforms that represent voices of the fashion industry. Readers often rely on these sources to gain knowledge and insight on what is going on in the industry. For major sources like these to ignore Abloh’s use of models that have atypical looks reveals a lot about the industry that claims to be evolving and more progressive — the lack of acknowledgement shows resistance.
I want editors and writers to point out what the human eye is drawn towards. I want writers to address it, to be transparent and to be real. Abloh’s first campaign is so
much more than just a presentation of his unique, yet utilitarian clothing. For me, I see it as an expression of the fashion industry he is attempting to change — an industry that is natural and filled with colorful faces.
“I’m not content with just designing clothes. I am more enamored with providing a premise of why my designs exist,” Abloh said.