(Paris) Givenchy announced on Friday the departure of its American artistic director Matthew Williams who, after three years of collaboration with the French house, will concentrate on his own streetwear brand 1017 Alyx 9SM.
“The change comes into effect on January 1, 2024,” Givenchy said in a press release, adding that “the next collections” will be created by the studio while awaiting “the announcement of a new creative chapter.”
Appointed in June 2020, in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, to replace Briton Clare Waight Keller, the designer brought a modern, streetwear touch to the house of the aristocratic chic that had dressed Audrey Hepburn.
A daring mix of genres which was not always readable for the fashion world where his brand Alyx, which bears the name of his eldest daughter, remains very popular.
Matthew Williams had worked with rapper Kanye West like Virgil Abloh who was artistic director of Vuitton men before his sudden death in November 2021 from cancer.
Givenchy is the second house of the luxury giant LVMH after Louis Vuitton to have called on a streetwear designer in order to attract a young audience.
“I want to thank Matthew for all the energy he brought to Givenchy. Its collections, resolutely creative and contemporary, have sparked a new dynamic and found their audience,” said Givenchy CEO Renaud de Lesquen.
Matthew Williams, for his part, declared that working for Givenchy was his “dream” and that he had strived over the past three years to “perpetuate the legacy of Mr. Hubert de Givenchy” while bringing his “own creative vision.” “.