Ergonomics meets fluidity in Louis Vuitton SS27 collection
Ergonomics. Or, as the French say, “ergonomie”—the discipline of understanding interactions between humans and other external elements. Simply, the laws of work.
Inspired by the fluidity and mobility of the “conditions, capabilities, and movement of the human body,” Nicolas Ghesquière threaded together the new spring/summer 2027 (SS27) Louis Vuitton collection on these principles.
Capitalizing on the intuitive relationship between body and action—a harmonious interplay of motion and form—gone is the structured stiffness of the showpieces that normally grace runways. Instead, Ghesquière opts for pieces that move with the body. Pieces that glide with ease, that bend and shift with every movement, almost like second skin.
“An affinity can be forged between these modern concerns and the heritage of Louis Vuitton,” the brand states. “They share an ideal of lightness, an essence of form defined by function, to ease movement, to travel. An ideology can translate across times and disciplines.”
The fluidity of fashion
“Engineered for action, with instinct at the root.” This is the founding principle of the SS27 collection, as Ghesquière understands that the body is built for movement, for locomotion—not to stay still.
While structure remains a core, the rigidity is replaced with materials and silhouettes that “mold to [the body’s] ever-fluctuating contours, transforming as it shifts and moves within.”
“Pieces perceived as structureless are in actuality complex topographies, composed of different surface tensions that mirror the body inside,” the brand expresses. And it does so with cloth and leather—made to resemble second skin in sensation and function—against the wearer.
Defying physics
The Louis Vuitton SS27 collection is interwoven with a spectrum of garments—think double and triple composite chiffons, carré silks, and scarf fabrics in silk and cashmere. Traditional tailoring is given a different spin, streamlined even, with the removal of internal layers in a move of reduction.
But grounding these pieces are knitwear delineates and footwear, bringing these weightless pieces back to earth.
“A scenography as a contradiction. Rupture. A cityscape animated by singular figures, moving incongruously like a feather or balloon through a static vista, paused,” the brand expresses. “The surrounding inertia serves as amplification for the impact of a motile individual—of a dynamic human body, in life.”
