It's shocking to see a headline of someone passing away so young, especially someone who represents a sense of youth and undeniable creative exploration. You sort of begin to take them for granted, and no matter how much Virgil Abloh seemed to have his hands in over the years, there was something both timeless and just so contemporary about his output and energy. He was fashion, design, art, music, architecture and a figure that represented what it was to fulfill every childhood dream a kid has who says they wanted to be "an artist." In a post on his Instagram account yesterday, that announced his untimely death at the age of 41, Abloh had said, “Everything I do is for the 17-year-old version of myself,” and that feels like a momentous quote about the joy he brought to his projects and to the companies he worked for.
Whether at the helm of Louis Vuitton or working with Takashi Murakami, designing for Kanye or making bags for IKEA, making Nikes or doing his OFF WHITE brand, there was just a simple joy in his work. You may not have loved it, but you got the sense that we were witnessing a talented man living out a dream, that a 17 year old wanted to just make stuff and now had the keys to world to make even more. It was inspiring, and it's a artful soul that will be missed immensely. —Evan Pricco
