As designed by Virgil Abloh, Off White is a label that is hard not to be intrigued by. Putting aside Abloh’s famous friend, the Off White men’s line is part of a legit movement that is changing the look and feel of menswear with tailored and clever take on athletic leisure, which is the the 3.0 version of a movement rooted in sneaker culture and also owes debts to urban and streetwear labels.
But can all that be translated to women? That is the question. In many ways the sneaker culture that birthed so much has always treated women as immaterial outsiders that bones are tossed to. Here you go, “girls,” here’s a pink sneaker for you to chew on for the next six months. Even the super smart and greatly influential Nike has viewed the women’s part of its business with great seriousness for only the past few years.
And yet, there is an opening in women’s for youthful labels that can be shallowly described as Tomboyish but more accurately are ones that telegraph this young gen female ‘s comfort with a integrated humanity that embraces the ying, yang and blurred lines of gender version 2.015. Maybe that reads a bit too deep for a fashion label, but the form has always been a ménage à trois of function, art and culture. It’s cloudy with a chance of meatballs as to not whether or Alboh is that guy, but it’s possible. For certain we hope so.
