Set against the whimsical backdrop of Antoni Gaudi’s Park Güell in Barcelona, Louis Vuitton‘s Cruise 2025 (Resort 2025) fashion show showcased designer Nicolas Ghesquière’s vision of combining architectural marvels with his signature style. During the golden hour, celebrities including Sophie Turner, Ana de Armas and Jaden Smith gathered for pre-show cocktails at the hillside venue known for its colorful mosaic-covered serpentine benches.
Wicked star Cynthia Erivo praised the venue, saying, “It’s huge and it’s spectacular. All the shapes and the sculptures on the rooftops are wild and whimsical. It’s really, really beautiful.” She appreciated how the traveling collection lands in different destinations, allowing the pieces to be inspired by the surroundings.
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As dusk fell, guests were ushered into the Hypostyle Room, where benches snaked around a forest of Doric columns, providing a surreal backdrop for a lineup that oscillated between ’80s couture references and equestrian touches. Ghesquière infused the collection with a distinctly Spanish flavor, employing a “sombra y sol” palette in monochromatic silhouettes, often topped with graphic sombrero hats.
Flamenco-inspired polka dots and shiny fringe were sprinkled throughout his signature architectural looks, steering clear of pastiche. The show’s soundtrack, which combined Gary Numan’s “Music for Chameleons” with Malcolm McLaren’s “Madame Butterfly,” suggested a mood reminiscent of Barcelona’s gilded youth heading to a black-tie party circa 1986.
Ghesquière played with the era’s exaggerated volumes, showing jewel-toned satin pouf dresses and tiered puffball skirts. Jodhpurs featured flouncy draped hips, while metallic floral embroidery echoed Gaudi’s swirling organic designs. For cocktails and polo matches, he offered tailored jackets with power shoulders, sleek jumpsuits with crisscrossed pocket belts, and riding pants paired with draped tops and shaggy fringed boots that are sure to top stylists’ wish lists.
The designer’s vision of Spain was as strange and twisted as Barcelona’s colorful facades, a fitting tribute to the city where Vuitton is making its presence felt ahead of the Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup Barcelona, which kicks off in late summer. A dedicated capsule collection, unveiled last week, will cater to the brand’s customers’ sporting needs.
Ghesquière’s Cruise 2025 collection was indebted to Gaudi only in that it was inspired by Spanish figures of all stripes. He cited great painters such as Velazquez, Goya and Zurburan, legendary filmmaker Luis Bunuel and the award-winning 2022 film “As Bestas” by Rodrigo Sorogoyen as influences, in addition to the upcoming America’s Cup.
The push-pull between groundedness and extravagance played out in the collection, starting with tailored, mostly neutral looks worn with straw gaucho hats and mirrored racing shades. The austerity of jupe tailleurs and coat dresses gradually gave way to the voluptuous drape of silk skirts and trousers, their chiaroscuro folds nodding to the Spanish masters.
Horsey touches such as shiny riding boots and jodhpurs with deep faux fur cuffs were proposed, along with polka dots and ruffles that steered clear of everyday flamenco dresses. A deconstructed white lace skirt, reconstructed with wire hooks in the style of Spanish designer Paco Rabanne, showcased Ghesquière’s process-oriented approach and penchant for worked surfaces.
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©Photo: Louis Vuitton
