It’s a sweltering afternoon in late June when I meet Robin Givhan near NeueHouse Madison Square in Manhattan. Fresh off another interview, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author and Washington Post editor-at-large evokes a chatty and calming demeanor. As we make our way up to the main level of her hotel, we bond over the city’s heat wave, something she’s braving amidst a press run. There is a hint of excitement that she passes off to me as she speaks about the book that led to her latest press run, “Make It Ours: Crashing the Gates of Culture With Virgil Abloh.”
To many of us, Virgil Abloh, formerly of Louis Vuitton, changed the way upper echelons of the industry engage with younger generations and even social media. In “Make It Ours,” she captures that shift with the kind of clarity and nuance that honors the late designers’ many layers. There’s never been a book like this, one that delves into the rise of Abloh alongside storytelling that places him as a part of a lineage that follows esteemed designers, including Ozwald Boateng and Edward Buchanan, who previously was the first design director at the Italian house Bottega Veneta.
Abloh, Boateng, and Buchanan each hold their own unique space in the larger canon of the global fashion industry. However, Givhan chose to highlight the compelling backstories of Boateng and Buchanan as a means of giving each of these individuals their flowers, which was well overdue. Their backstories provide essential context surrounding the ascent of Abloh, framing him within a lineage of Black designers who challenged and reshaped the industry Robin also illustrates how Abloh’s journey, as the son of Ghanaian immigrants with a background in engineering and architecture, became its own blueprint. His trajectory offers an example for aspiring designers and creatives who are eager to reimagine what’s possible.
In “Make It Ours,” Givhan also delves into how Abloh’s upbringing led to a highly creative and travel-filled adulthood that consisted of a bevy of creative projects, highly publicized collaborations with Nike, and DJ’ing. Through the launch of Pyrex Vision, Off-White, and his later appointment at Louis Vuitton, Givhan urges readers to engage with the many facets that embodied Virgil, the designer who was also an adept listener, watcher, and one of the most compelling figures to ever exist in the fashion industry.
Below ESSENCE.com catches up with Robin Givhan to discuss “Make It Ours: Crashing the Gates of Culture With Virgil Abloh,” Abloh’s ability to cut through the noise within the global fashion industry, and more.
The power of community and pop culture is mentioned in the introduction when touching on Abloh’s uniqueness. Can you tell me more about this portion of the book?
Community was reflected in his use of social media, not just as a place to have a one-way conversation or as a place for announcements, but to really engage with people in a way that was pretty unusual for a designer. And, you know, we so often think of designers as being a bit siloed or, you know, very sort of protective of their creative energy. It was striking to me the number of designers of his generation who all knew each other and had various connections. But for me, the biggest thing is the collaborations, which are so obvious.
Ozwald Boateng’s creative director appointment at Givenchy Homme in 2003 was a fitting moment. Can you tell me why you felt this piece of history was necessary to present in the book?
When Virgil got the job at Louis Vuitton, there were a lot of stories, and some of them were so exuberant about his appointment that they sort of characterized him as the first Black person to, get [a] position at that level. And, you know, it’s understandable. But I also remember when Ozwald [Boateng] was appointed, as you know, it was historical, but it was so much quieter, and I was just curious to try and suss out for myself, okay, like, what was different between then and now?
It wasn’t that it was meant to be a secret by any means. I think some of it was just [that] it was a time when designers, like the name behind the label [weren’t] broadcast as widely. It was a time when fashion was still kind of in its bubble. It hadn’t broken out of that and become this sort of cultural thing, this form of entertainment. But I also realized that for someone like Ozwald, his approach to being this Black designer was very different, and the way that he talked about or didn’t talk about race was different.
To me, I am most drawn to the designer’s affinity for streetwear. He created a language that made sneakers and luxury fashion accessible for many. What do you have to say about this notion?
Virgil [Abloh] represented a really important moment for menswear. And because it was an important moment for menswear, it was de facto an important moment for fashion. Because he was sort of hitting [his] stride at a moment when menswear was ascending, and the most interesting things that were going on in fashion starting with men’s, everything from the athleisure to sneakers to the blurring of gender. And so it seemed like if you were having an impact there, and you were having an impact in the universe of sneakers, you were having an impact on fashion.
Do you feel that Virgil Abloh’s architectural background informed his design work?
The answer to that question is yes, in part because when I was talking to one of his instructors from the [Illinois Institute of Art], he talked about people who are not necessarily interested in becoming architects, still studying architecture. [The instructor] was saying that one of the aspects of that is you learn how to present your ideas in front of a room, and that’s just sort of part of the whole experience of getting an architecture degree and what it means to be an architect.
I think there was that aspect of it that was quite helpful. There was also the aspect of architecture, particularly, that he was enamored with someone like Rem Koolhaas. It was not necessarily about how the building was going to function, but it was about the meaning of the building in a particular environment, and how it might change the nature of that environment, or how it might complicate the nature of that environment, or how it serves as a reflection of the complicated nature of the environment.
As a child of someone who immigrated to this country at age seven, I can relate to Virgil Abloh’s ascent, which consisted of persistently carving out his creative path. To me, Virgil’s ascent is inspiring because of this notion.
I think it is a wonderful lesson for people who feel very much at a distance from the fashion industry. His example is incredibly empowering. That said, I still have a very soft spot in my heart for the people who say, ‘I’m going to go to design school and I’m going to learn the craft of draping and tailoring,’ and ‘I’m [going to] become an expert pattern maker,’ and all those things. I deeply respect that, because I do [think] we’re at a moment where expertise is under assault. I think we really need to highlight that and to celebrate it, while at the same time acknowledging that that’s not the only way, and acknowledging that those [technical] skills are incredibly important.
“Do it yourself” authenticity is a topic that you mention in the book regarding Virgil’s brilliance. In your opinion, is this what allowed the designer to leave a mark on the fashion industry?
I think it tapped into inviting outsiders in and demystifying the [industry]. I mean, to suggest that [you’re] doing it yourself is just as valid as a fashion statement; I think it’s really empowering. And I remember when he was doing the Nike collaboration, and kind of described it as, you know, license for some kid to go and buy a pair of [sneakers] and cut them up and do his own version of them. That’s so validating of someone else’s creative impulses. It makes it not so distant and [does] not feel like an impossible place to reach.
What do you feel is the most earnest truth that Virgil Abloh left us with through his work and the many achievements he conquered, including his appointment at Louis Vuitton?
For me, it would be during a conversation that he had with a group of students, and I can’t remember the exact question, but his response was, ‘I choose optimism.’ I was not expecting this, and I’ve said this before, that for me, that was the biggest takeaway from the book. It wasn’t about being naive. It wasn’t trying to gloss over the challenges, but it was simply saying that, you know, I choose to see that things are possible. I choose to see that people can change. I choose to see that something good can happen tomorrow. I feel like that was such a powerful way to be.