French fashion is a formidable soft power, radiating a tradition of savoir-faire, an art de vivre – a cultural singularity. Taken literally, soft power is also a fascinating oxymoron. How to reconcile two antagonists, softness and power?
The Louis Vuitton Women’s Spring-Summer 2025 collection thrives on contrast, seemingly generating constant movement. Sartorial soft power can also be a striking back-and-forth between two contradictory yet harmonious opposites. The suppleness of structure. Intractable lightness. Mastering vibrations. Spidery depths. Ethereal opulence. Razor-sharp delicacy. Resolute femininity. The mechanics of fluidity.
This season, pictorial works by the artist Laurent Grasso appear on selected pieces that reprise five paintings from the series entitled Studies into the Past. The musical set is comprised of a mix of four titles taken from the new album by Jamie xx, “In Waves.”
