Louis Vuitton’s cruise collection gets more unrestrained. To the point of the inordinate. And, now, the ire of local residents for its choice of show venue

Louis Vuitton’s cruise 2025 show in Barcelona’s Park Güell, the Antoni Gaudí-designed space, was destined to arouse more than just the interest of the brand’s fans; it was bound to annoy those for whom the parque is not a commercial show venue, but one for all to enjoy, non-luxury consumers alike. Touted as The Citizen Park, the quirky and sprawling expanse with their mosaic-covered buildings of fantastic shapes and curious pinnacles that are more likely found in fairy tale lands than urbanscapes, is the pride of the Catalonian capital. It is, therefore, understandable why many of the city’s folks were deeply unhappy with LV’s choice of venue for their show, so much so that protests were staged before and during the event, which was derided for “privatisation of public space”. And when the police were involved to control the crowd, they charged at protestors with batons, and were criticised for reaction that was “totally out of proportion”, as one resident told The Guardian.

Louis Vuitton is synonymous with travel, as the brand persistently trumpets. Their cruise collection, while looking like nothing travelers would wear when exploring cities and tourist attractions, such as Park Güell, continue to show outside Paris, in ‘exotic’ (read: incredible or fanciful) locales. In the ‘post-COVID’ years of the past two, when over-tourism has plagued many cities, from Venice to Kyoto (and indeed Barcelona), LV’s insistence on staging shows in already too-popular sites is, doubtlessly, problematic. And, perhaps, more so for what it seemingly promotes: travel harder and in already overcrowded places (such as World Heritage Sites, of which Park Güell is one since 1984), and just aggravate the problem. According to local reports, the presentation required the park, which draws a reported nine million visitors per year, to be shut for days. And police, as well as security personnel from private firms, “saturated” the place, another resident complained. To make matters worse, part of a famous flight of stone stairs inside the park incurred damages during set-up for the fashion show. It is unclear who will pay for the repairs.

The show and the staging were said to be a nod to the sailing competition, the 2024 America’s Cup, which found a host in Barcelona this year and which counted LV as the main sponsor. Despite the association and the venue choice, there was nothing nautical or terribly Gaudian about the clothes. Nicolas Ghesquière did what he is good at: odd shapes, unconventional silhouettes, and vague retro-ness. The collection, to us, felt cobbled together, even if the compositional oddness felt deliberate. In that sense, it could be considered to embrace the spirit of the project that Count Eusebi Güell had commissioned Mr Gaudi to embark on. While there were no obvious references to trencadís (the Gaudi style of broken tile mosaic) or spires (as turbans that Erykah Badu would be thrilled with?), the pieces appeared otherworldly, barely touching what one might pack for a cruise or, for that matter, any holiday. These were clothes that would appeal to the rare individual for whom dressed-up is an every-occasion affair, even—or especially—when vacationing.

To be sure, it is not an unappealing collection, but it was all Ghesquière-isms bordering on pushing itself very near satiated point. To the curiously—perhaps not unexpectedly—retro-electronic sounds of Gary Newman’s Music for Chameleons and Malcolm McLaren’s Madame Butterfly, the models ambled on in wholly exaggerated dress forms or amalgams of contradictions. The pleating deep and broad, the ruching extreme, the draping extravagant. Some of the pieces with broad shoulders seemed to target modern-day Alexis Carrington (those wide-brim bolero hats too); some of the suiting could be homage to early Giorgio Armani. There, too, were all-lace pieces (including a dress with contrasting black openwork that suggested underclothes) that would delight Self Portrait fans to no end. As proponent of rather hyperbolic shapes, Mr Ghesquière made sure to accommodate bolder and rounder shoulders, top-heavy combos, and very-ballooned puffed skirts. And pants (some, his favourite jodhpurs) with wide, zippable cuffs under which shaggy, fringed booties were paired with. No doubt to be better noticed. And, adored.

Screen shot (top) louisvuitton/YouTube. Photos: Louis Vuitton