Nicholas Ghesquière, Louis Vuitton’s creative director, has been posting pics of the upcoming series 4 campaign on his personal Instagram account. Two of those included showcase Lightning, from FFXIII, in some sharp pieces from the SS 2016 line.
Is this awesome? I’m not sure.
Ghesquière seemingly has quite a penchant for digital models, with the whole show being geared towards ‘heroic fantasy’. From the garish cyberpunk accessories to the wide-shouldered coats and angelically flowing skirts, Ghesquière’s influences rest unequivocally in the wide expanse of the JRPG style.
To my amazement, this wasn’t even the first time that a designer had substituted tangible models for digital ones – Prada’s Summer 2012 line was also modeled by FFXIII characters.
Why proposition Square Enix to produce models rather than games? Games hailing from Japan (and beyond, as the style has expanded) often err towards a very predefined style which mirrors the standard over here in Asia – untouchable beauty standards and an emphasis on perfection. Couple that with the fact that Prada have already employed Lightning’s androgynous looks – a popular theme over the last few years – to showcase their men’s collection, and the concept turns from polarizing eccentricity to a stroke of genius.
Ghesquière pulled a daring move, but it’s worked a charm – and the fashion industry seems to agree. To answer my earlier question, which I posed before I read into this properly – hell yes, this is awesome.
graemefinch.com 