Au Revoir, Marc!

It’s a split we all are mourning. Marc Jacobs, the creative director of the Maison, has moved on from Louis Vuitton after an illustrious 16-year stint. L’Officiel India brings you a backstage exclusive from LV’s Spring/Summer 2014 show, where he discusses at length the inspiration behind his last collection for the label.

“Changes are great and horrible things. People love it and hate it at the same time. But without changes, things just don’t move…” Marc Jacobs had said in an interview once. And yet when the moment dawned upon the fashion world, when Marc confirmed he was parting ways with the French fashion house, we were shocked. The mood at the show was wistful. All black. Almost like a funeral. The set of the show was re-created with bits and pieces of many of his glorious sets from the collections past. The escalators, the carousel, the elevators, the fountain, hotel corridors from the last season—all of it flashing before us, a reminder of the designer’s extraordinary showmanship, only this time in various shades of black. But despite the mournful allusions, it didn’t feel like a tragic ending to an otherwise splendid marriage.

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Marc dedicated the collection to the many women who influenced or touched him during his time in Paris, including designer muses Miuccia Prada, Coco Chanel and Rei Kawakubo. “To the showgirl in all of us” is how he signed off. After the show, one which has been called one of the most memorable shows in the history of fashion, Marc confirmed that he and his business partner, Robert Duffy, would indeed be leaving the French luxury goods house to focus on Marc’s eponymous label. We caught up with him backstage. And he enthralled us.

What was the inspiration behind the Spring/Summer 2014 collection?

Women. And more specifically, the SHOWGIRL! From designers to entertainers, the showgirl who is an extrovert and shows off to the world was our inspiration. I looked at our work from Stephen Sprouse graffiti from past seasons to the ever-present Louis Vuitton Damier in previous seasons. Then I considered the things I particularly like, such as uniforms and tuxedos, and I customised them, piecing them together. We put a 1930s cape on the back of a four-pocket tweed jacket, we put a men’s sweatshirt on the back of a tuxedo. There was a bit of mixing and matching, with a touch of menswear, making masculine things look feminine—but all in black.

Why did you decide to do an all-black collection?

I wanted to create a collection of clothes that people would wear. And I wanted these to be as chic as possible. I wanted them to take on sequins, beads and feathers, surface interest and applied decoration, while remaining very stylish. If they had been in different colours, the collection would have looked like a circus. Besides, black is chic, black is forever, black is bright, black is night, black is sensational. It brings glamour and a feeling of Paris at midnight, of the spectacles of the city. And many of the women in fashion that I have idolised over the years have worn black. It feels very Left Bank or downtown New York. It’s very cool.

Have any of those women in particular inspired this collection?

There were a number of them. From Cher to Madonna to Lady Gaga, from Juliette Greco and Sofia Coppola to Francoise Hardy—but most of all, the showgirl that is in every woman.

So, what was the story of the show?

It was a show about the showgirl and for the showgirl that is in every woman. It was about the way that we are drawn to fashion, because it allows us to make creative choices in order to express ourselves and play up in front of the world, what we want to play up. This was a performance, we are here to entertain, and we want to get the attention of the audience. We want to get the attention of the extrovert, and that’s the woman we have designed for: the extrovert in every woman. We all dress to show off whether we are minimalist or maximalist. We wear perfume, makeup and clothes to be noticed, because we are creatures who want to show off… Like peacocks that spread their feathers to attract attention. It is human nature to adorn oneself, to dress to seduce.

Where did the idea of using the features of your past shows come from?

Over the recent seasons we created sets that marked a journey, shows that had a narrative. I wanted this set to continue that narrative and to reflect the collection, which also mixes different things that we have created together and different references. So we borrowed from previous sets and realised them in black, in a glamorous way.

It was interesting to see jeans in the collection.

Yes. I think it’s nice to wear jeans with something ornate. We wanted to mix things up: masculine with feminine, sport with formalwear. That was our way of exuding a cool, casual attitude towards putting together very glamorous things.

Do you have any favourite look?

There were many, but one that stands out was a jersey dress inspired by Louis Vuitton’s travel blanket. It has two points, one at the front and one at the back. I also loved the man’s tuxedo jacket that featured a crazy corset and flamboyant train.

This was your last show for Louis Vuitton. How do you feel?

I never intended this show to be the last one.

And with these words came to an end a fascinating era of fashion for Louis Vuitton, coupled with hope that the next in line to this throne would be able to match upto the showmanship of Marc Jacobs.

From the January 2014 issue of L’Officiel India.