Designer Christian Louboutin brings his signature red palette from his stilettos to the jackets of Cuba’s Olympic team.
The formalwear collection designed by Christian and founder of online retailer Sport Henri Henri Tai will be worn by the Cuban team during the closing ceremony of the summer Olympics this August. The collection will consist of Guyabera-inspired jackets with flag patches and five-pointed stars, calf-leather kitten-heel sandals, loafers, and high-tops.
“It’s that elegance and fluidity of movement of someone who is so in control of their body that fascinates me,” Christian tells WWD. “At the Olympics, it feels like these athletes put on performance gear and simultaneously turn into these superheroes that defy gravity, that defy time, that defy all rules of physics.”
This collab between the luxury designer and Cuba, as Fashionista notes, is “fashion’s best interaction with the country so far” because it doesn’t “glorify a prerevolutionary, sugar-coated Cuba.” Examples of these include Stella McCartney’s resort 2016 show which included Fidel Castro look-alikes, and Chanel’s extravagant cruise show last May.
When asked why he chose to design for the closing ceremony, Christian answers, “We designed the celebratory outfit for the moment they turn back into humans, still in that glory moment, still in their light but heading back to the real world.”
Now that he’s tried his hand on designing formalwear, maybe Christian should extend his reach from accessories to a full clothing line in the future.
[The Cut, WWD, and Fashionista]
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