At Vuitton: Et In Arcadia Ego - click for photos
Written by Timothy Hagy
PARIS, July 3 - A light breeze sprayed water droplets from the fountains
in the Parc André Citroën, as guests sipped champagne on the
terrace before the Vuitton show. White-vested waiters scurried about with
silver trays spread with canapés of tuna in honey, and lamb over
mint. And just in the middle of the crowd was the ever-gracious president
of Louis Vuitton, Yves Carelle, along with his elegant, English-born wife
Rebecca. Their young son, little Yves, was delighted with a glass of Coca-Cola,
but somewhat mystified by all the adults crowding around him. He pulled
at his father's jacket.
"Daddy has to work," M. Carcelle patiently explained. "This
is a fashion show, and then meeting the press. You know_work."
Work was not on little Yves' young mind as he clutched his glass with both
hands. But inside the glass temple, where an arcade of ivy arched over moss-green
satin seats, work was also banished to a distant concept, as the show magically
evoked a lazy summer afternoon of childhood where little boys never grow
up. The inspiration was an Evelyn Waugh classic, "Brideshead Revisited".
There was a surrealist aura to the collection that Marc Jacobs sent out
for Spring / Summer 2005, almost as if the geopolitical darkness of the
modern world could be brightened with one beam of Aladdin's lamp. Brooches
in the form of turtles and teddy bears crawled onto lapels, scarves and
even burgundy tasseled Tambour caps - an accessory that conjures up a vision
of some distant bazaar, one where the Arab world is full of friends, not
dangerous mists.
The collection was light and relaxed, with pastel cashmere sweaters,
creamy Bermuda shorts, cool gray silk shirts, velvet pajamas and even an
old fashioned silk and velvet smoking jacket presented with a new line of
Vuitton gym and travel bags. Add a pale lilac linen jacket, an
emerald-green velvet blazer or shimmering gold silk pants, and the long
days of summer stretch out into soft, warm evenings. But the vanilla slacks
paired with white muscle shirts, proudly emblazoned with the LV logo, provided
just enough contrast to give the impression that these little boys probably
bite.
As the soundtrack rocked with a jazzed up version of Gershwins' classic
"Summertime, and the livin' in easy", the show wound down - under
the arcade, where the boys play, and happily I am.
At Vuitton: Et In Arcadia Ego - click for photos
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