We have to discuss this. Now, it’s a fairly well known fact that Virgil has been accused of plagiarising items and ideas, repurposing them into his own, as called out by dietprada over several items like the hoodie and Ikea’s “MAKERAD” collection featuring the doorstop chair, initially designed by Paul McCobb way back when. Abloh claims to have elevated the status of a simple, functional chair into an art piece by integrating a doorstop into one of its legs, and that basically says it all about the breadth of his creative endeavours.
This one is no different though. Virgil Abloh’s newly designed sneaker for fashion house Louis Vuitton is a bit of a compilation of sorts from Nike’s and Jordan’s back catalog of shoes, with the clearest comparison being done with the Avia 880s of old. Upon first inspection, the colourway looks eerily similar to the Air Jordan 3 Black Cements, all the way to the design and colour palette of the outsole, sans the black cement detailing. The hangtag too is extremely reminiscent of the ones Jordan use, only now the LV logo adorns the face instead of the Jumpman.
Left: The New Louis Vuitton Sneaker
Right: The AVIA 880
Overall, the collective opinion around the office revolves around “CMI” (Cannot Make It).
While the concept behind “The Ten” conveys an interesting coverage whereby deconstructing and reconstructing classic silhouettes amplifies the shoes’ human value and intensifying the emotional connection of the icons to the wearer, the new ethos just doesn’t carry the same weight when it comes to depth and meaning, and public perception was quick to dismiss it as a blatant copy, with Nike bits added in into the proverbial mixing bowl.
Then again, the same argument can be said for other fashion houses too, exemplified by the Saint Laurent’s SL10, a somewhat inspired copy of the Air Jordan 1 ‘Bred,’ mimicking its colourway one to one only discerned by different cuttings and material use. Jerry Lorenzo’s Fear Of God 101 Low too has been questioned as to whether to shoe is copied directly from Vans or just an inspiration.
Left: Yves Saint Laurent SL 10
Right: Fear Of God 101 Low
So it comes down to where the line is drawn between copy and inspiration. Shoes like Hender Scheme and Common Projects can be classified as inspirations, elevating standard models from Adidas, Nike, and Converse, into high end luxury items by way of premium materials such as calf leather and handmade detailing to finish off the silhouette, whereas on the other end of the spectrum, we have shoes like the LVs above.
What do you think? Inspiration or Plagiarism? Let us know in the comments below!
