Abloh-isms

A collection of essential quotations from the renowned fashion designer, DJ, and stylistAbloh-isms is a collection of essential quotations from American fashion designer, DJ, and stylist Virgil Abloh, who was a major creative figure in the worlds of pop culture and art. Abloh began his career as Kanye West’s creative director before founding the luxury streetwear label Off-White and becoming artistic director for Louis Vuitton, making Abloh the first American of African descent to hold that title at a French fashion house. Defying categorization, Abloh’s work has been the subject of solo exhibitions at museums and galleries, most notably in a major retrospective at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago. Gathered from interviews and other sources, this selection of compelling and memorable quotations from the designer reveals his thoughts on a wide range of subjects, including creativity, passion, innovation, race, and what it means to be an artist of his generation. Lively and thought-provoking, these quotes reflect Abloh’s unique perspective as a trailblazer in his fields.Select quotations from the book:“I believe that coincidence is key, but coincidence is energies coming towards each other. You have to be moving to meet it.”“Life is collaboration. Where I think art can be sort of misguided is that it propagates this idea of itself as a solo love affair—one person, one idea, no one else involved.”“Black influence has created a new ecosystem, which can grow and support different types of life that we couldn’t before."

"Virgil Abloh says the darndest, most illuminating things—enough in his young fashion career to fill a 160-page book titled Abloh-isms. . . . The book maps out Abloh’s unique thinking in chapters devoted to his early years, his inspirations and influences, his creative methods, his impact and his singular point of view on streetwear, fashion and art . . . breathtakingly incisive."---Miles Socha, Women’s Wear Daily online, "[Abloh-isms] spotlights a diverse selection of quotes by Virgil Abloh who has made a profound mark in the worlds of fashion, art, design and pop culture. Authored by Larry Warsh, the book features a collection of quotes by Abloh that were gathered from interviews, discussions, media outlets and other sources. The quotes touch on Abloh’s creativity, passion, innovation, race, and what it means to be an artist of his generation."---Keith Estiler, Hypebeast, "Abloh-isms is the new Bible for all the fans of the American designer. . . . An unmissable volume for all Abloh fans, and for all fashion lovers.", "This set of quotes reflects the unique and peculiar perspective, idea and philosophy that accompanied Virgil Abloh throughout his life showing us how he became an icon of our time."

Virgil Abloh (1980–2021) was artistic director of the menswear collection at Louis Vuitton and founder and CEO of the fashion label Off-White. In 2018, he was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine. Larry Warsh has been active in the art world for more than thirty years as a publisher and artist-collaborator and was a founding member of the Basquiat Authentication Committee until its dissolution in 2012. He is also the editor of Weiwei-isms and Humanity, by Ai Weiwei; Basquiat-isms and The Notebooks, by Jean-Michel Basquiat; and Haring-isms, by Keith Haring (all Princeton).