Virgil Abloh Announces Louis Vuitton Has Signed Skateboarder Lucien Clarke

Lucien Clarke has made multiple appearances on the LV runway. Now, he and Virgil Abloh have unveiled a new deal including a 'Thrasher' collab and more.

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Image via Getty/Nataliya Petrova/NurPhoto

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Virgil Abloh has announced a major moment in Louis Vuitton history.

On Monday, Abloh—who currently heads men's wear for the French fashion house— unveiled a deal with skateboarder Lucien Clarke. As Abloh noted, the link-up marks "the first skater deal of this type" and sees Clarke utilizing creative "free reign" in the design of a shoe.

Additionally, the two have been working together on video components for the past year, with the first official Louis Vuitton x Lucien Clarke ad appearing in the new edition of Thrasher.

In a separate statement, Clarke—who earlier this month appeared on the cover of Modern Weekly with Abloh—gave fans a closer look at the Thrasher elements of the collaborative effort and teased what's to come.

"This is only the beginning," he promised.

Fans of both iconic figures in their respective fields first learned of a potential Clarke x Abloh collab last year. Clarke, who's previously appeared on the LV runway, teased as much in a Highsnobietyinterview that year while also sharing his thoughts on why he believes fashion and skateboarding should be viewed as one world.

"I'd like to think skateboarding and fashion is one entity," Clarke told Anthony Pappalardo at the time.

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