virgil abloh passes away at 41

the legacy of virgil abloh

at 41 years old, virgil abloh has passed away following a battle with cancer. the american designer has endured his illness privately since his diagnosis in 2019. 

virgil abloh | image © designboom

virgil abloh‘s family took to instagram today to announce his passing (see the announcement here)

‘we are devastated to announce the passing of our beloved virgil abloh, a fiercely devoted father, husband, son, brother, and friend. he is survived by his loving wife shannon abloh, his children lowe abloh and grey abloh, his sister edwina abloh, his parents nee and eunice abloh, and numerous dear friends and colleagues.

for over two years, virgil valiantly battled a rare, aggressive form of cancer, cardiac angiosarcoma. he chose to endure his battle privately since his diagnosis in 2019, undergoing numerous challenging treatments, all while helming several significant institutions that span fashion, art, and culture.

through it all, his work ethic, infinite curiosity, and optimism never wavered. virgil was driven by his dedication to his craft and to his mission to open doors for others and create pathways for greater equality in art and design. he often said, “everything I do is for the 17-year-old version of myself,” believing deeply in the power of art to inspire future generations.

we thank you all for your love and support, and we ask for privacy as we grieve and celebrate virgil’s life.’

virgil abloh

september 30, 1980 – november 28, 2021

 

 

 

 

 

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in 2019, virgil abloh was honored with the golden madonnina at THE DESIGN PRIZE, milan’s annual award program curated by designboom (see here). 

virgil abloh awarded THE DESIGN PRIZE 2019 for BEST COMMUNICATION (see here)
image © designboom

artist and designer, DJ, creator, self-taught in fashion, virgil abloh was the idol of generation Z. from his beginnings, the talented founder of off-white and artistic director of the louis vuitton men’s line offered a new vision of a world where diversity would finally have its place. an apostle of the new generation of ‘kids’ who venerated him across the world, virgil abloh has foreshadowed a real change of cultural paradigm, based on a transdisciplinary approach fueled by the colossal vital energy of pop culture and hip-hop, and by the permanent and direct contact with the consumer (via social networks).

born to a couple of ghanaians who immigrated to the US, he grew up fully aware of his dual culture. ‘this double anchoring was part of my education. since my teenage years, I have traveled regularly to africa, to my parents house in ghana. I always knew what my life might have been like if my parents had stayed there and hadn’t emigrated to the US.’ abloh said.

it is with this ethos that in 2012 he founded his fashion brand, off-white, born from pyrex vision, an artistic experiment, which shined in particular through his countless “collabs”, including artists such as carsten höller, takashi murakami or musicians such as A$AP Rocky.

in his radical flattening of hierarchies, merchandising and the fine arts dialogue freely.

he was holding out a mirror to the zeitgeist, revealing (to himself) his own unconscious. he appropriated the idea of ​​the ready-made to the point of frequently declaring: “marcel duchamp is my lawyer.” the ready-made and the re-contextualization, the quotation is reflected in his graphics – based on words placed in quotation marks. with irony, the presence of a speech in the speech, opened a level of metalanguage. virgil abloh radically applied to each product, to each collaboration, to each capsule collection an argument that resembles a manifesto. ultimately the great talent of virgil abloh, and that’s why he received the milanese award: THE DESIGN PRIZE’s golden madonnina in 2019 for BEST COMMUNICATION.

at milan’s THE DESIGN PRIZE gala in 2019, alice rawsthorn awards virgil abloh the golden madonnina

image © designboom

reasoned methodology was a central element of abloh’s activity. for his first show at LV, he brought together a set of notes under the title “the vocabulary according to virgil abloh, a liberal definition of terms and explanation of ideas.” the notes were placed on the seats of the guests. similar to dictionary entries, his personal definitions of words and terms, offered many keys for a better understanding of the collection.

‘I don’t have a message, I’m just putting my culture forward. that was the meaning of this first parade, to show where I come from.’ abloh said.

virgil abloh has developed a very simple and very personal way of looking at his audience: “tourists” and “purists”. 

winners and nominees of the design prize 2019
image © designboom

and he did not exclude himself from either of these two categories in his own consumption of art, fashion, music, architecture and design. the “tourist”, in his conception, is an enthusiast. he keeps his eyes wide open to discoveries, eager to learn more, but without considering himself a specialist. the “purist”, on the contrary, is that expert who knows the history of the subject inside out. abloh preferred the humanity of the “tourists” to that of the “purists”, in order to create a more democratic space for creation. he made a difference and helped us to become more equal.

‘we are devastated to announce the passing of our beloved virgil abloh, a fiercely devoted father, husband, son, brother, and friend. he is survived by his loving wife shannon abloh, his children lowe abloh and grey abloh, his sister edwina abloh, his parents nee and eunice abloh, and numerous dear friends and colleagues.

for over two years, virgil valiantly battled a rare, aggressive form of cancer, cardiac angiosarcoma. he chose to endure his battle privately since his diagnosis in 2019, undergoing numerous challenging treatments, all while helming several significant institutions that span fashion, art, and culture.

through it all, his work ethic, infinite curiosity, and optimism never wavered. virgil was driven by his dedication to his craft and to his mission to open doors for others and create pathways for greater equality in art and design.

he often said, ‘everything I do is for the 17-year-old version of myself,’  believing deeply in the power of art to inspire future generations.

we thank you all for your love and support, and we ask for privacy as we grieve and celebrate virgil’s life.’ says a message on the home page of off-white.

virgil abloh awarded THE DESIGN PRIZE 2019 for BEST COMMUNICATION

image © designboom

‘it is with profound sorrow that I learned of the passing of virgil abloh. virgil was not only a friend, great collaborator, creative genius, visionary and disruptor, but also one of the best cultural communicators of our times. he paved the way for future generations. as a devoted supporter of his community through his charities and passions, he was an eternal optimist who believed anything was possible. in this same spirit, we at louis vuitton will proudly continue to celebrate his legacy with a final show in miami, per his wishes. I am honored to have called him my friend. my deepest thoughts are with his wife, children, parents, family and the entire community that was touched by his greatness.’

– michael burke, louis vuitton’s chairman and CEO said on instagram.

‘virgil was here’ in loving memory of virgil abloh, louis vuitton pays tribute to the life and legacy of a creative genius with a presentation of dis SS2022 collection in miami on november 30th at 5:30 (ET).’ announces LV on twitter.

R.I.P. virgil abloh. he will not be forgotten and will be greatly missed.