Loubi in Progress, Christian Louboutin’s newest collection that celebrates the houses creative process, is one that’s unique in its own right. Showcasing elements of design that typically remain unseen in the brand’s Parisian atelier, the collection is a special testament to Louboutin’s start-to-finish design process and innovative construction techniques. It all started in the early ‘90s when the storied fashion house created the “trash mule”, a design built on the premise that “someone’s trash can turn into someone else’s treasure.” Utilizing recycled scraps of paper and other discarded elements to create hand-made collages, the designs were then overlaid with PVC and turned into unsuspecting pieces of high fashion. This iconic material has been sheltering Louboutin creations ever since and is the pulsing heart of the collection.
With Loubi in Progress, the same technique is applied to the brand’s signature craft paper that’s traditionally used for shopping bags and shoe boxes. “It’s about proportion and balance,” says Louboutin. “This collection is very natural to me because we use the brown wrapping paper for our shoe boxes and shopping bags, which we have had since the beginning of the house. Heels are raw, nude, or only covered in red Loubi leather, the exact same color of our sole which required years of research to be transcribed. There is also a piece in the collection with a measuring tape that I found on my artisans’ tables, whom I see every day. I used it to recreate an ankle strap on a sandal.”
Christian, it seems, has taken his designs, turned them inside out and stripped them naked while spotlighting elements of the creation process typically meant to remain hidden, encapsulating forever in each piece his artistic gesture exposed, undisturbed, and frozen into unique compositions. The result is a visually bold collection, a unique fragment of the atelier and creative testimony you’ll wear for a lifetime.
Loubi in Progress is available now worldwide at christianlouboutin.com and in Christian Louboutin boutiques.
Words by Kara Studzinski / @karastud
Portrait by Kate Martin
