There couldn't have been a more appropriate day for Kim Jones' S/S 15 Louis Vuitton show. As the sun beamed through the glass panels of LV's huge greenhouse-like show space, Jones presented us optimism and cheer. The mirrors on shisha embroidery, which covered jumpsuits and bombers, twinkled in the afternoon light, while those magnificent hues - shocking pink, orange and Majorelle blue - looked radiant. On paper the combination of that bright palette and those Rajasthan references makes the collection sound cluttered, but there was a remarkable cleanness and purity to this offering. But that's Jones' special skill; taking a myriad of historical and cultural inspirations - in this case everything from Sawai Jai Singh, the king who built India's pink city, to turban fabrics and the palaces of the lakes cities of Udaipur - and making something modern and streamlined. He'd even managed to turn a decidedly retro seventies cut trouser into something that felt vaguely relevant, though perhaps not as immediately covetable as those brilliant bright bombers and graphic V-print poloshirts.
The importance of modernity shouldn't be underestimated. When working for a house with as much heritage and as many resources as Vuitton it could be easy to fall into a trap of producing things that look stuffy or needlessly opulent, an issue we see at many other luxury brands. Jones' success is bringing luxury into the tiniest details rather than slapping you in the face with it - that's why his pieces are so inviting, you don't just want to look once, but explore all the tiny details and inspect the smallest aspects, just as you would as a traveller when marvelling at the beauty of a foreign city. So if you'd looked closely at this show you'd note that every tiny mirror on that shish embroidery was engraved with a tiny LV. Why not? Vuitton gives Jones opportunities for that kind of detail and craft. But despite the visibility of those resources and all that financial might, it was Jones not Vuitton that shined. This collection was about his signatures and style - from those MA1s to those sporty, zip-through jumpsuits (the pink one is without doubt all ready the hit item of the season) - and was a symbol of a confidence and drive that shouldn't be underestimated.
