"Virgil Abloh: The Codes," a major retrospective of the late Virgil Abloh, Louis Vuitton's men's artistic director and the founder of Off-White, will run from Thursday, Dec. 10, to Sunday, Jan. 18, at The Shed, the cultural center at Hudson Yards. The show features nearly 1,000 sneakers, sketches and prototypes selected from an archive of more than 20,000 items, along with a re-creation of his Paris studio and a media lab where visitors can handle his design files. Tickets are $25 for general admission and free for students, teachers and anyone under 18. General sales began at noon on Friday, Oct. 23.
"Virgil Abloh: The Codes," a retrospective of designer Virgil Abloh (1980–2021), who broke down the boundary between streetwear and luxury fashion, opens Thursday, Dec. 10, at The Shed, the cultural center at Hudson Yards. It runs for about six weeks, through Sunday, Jan. 18. Nearly 1,000 works and materials will fill two galleries totaling 28,000 square feet (about 2,600 square meters). This year marks five years since his death at age 41.
At a Glance
From Architect to Louis Vuitton
A Chicago native, Abloh studied architecture and founded Off-White in 2013. In 2018, he became the first Black artistic director of Louis Vuitton menswear. He released the "The Ten" sneaker series with Nike and a furniture collection with IKEA. His working principle, often called the "3 percent approach"—changing a familiar object just slightly to present it as something new—still leaves its mark across fashion and design.
A Paris Studio and Design Files You Can "Touch"
The exhibition was curated by Chloe Sultan and Mahfuz Sultan and drawn from the Virgil Abloh Archive of more than 20,000 items. Prototypes, sketches and notes are displayed next to finished products so visitors can trace how an idea became a product. The two most eye-catching spaces are a room re-creating his office at Pont-Neuf in Paris and a media lab where visitors can open and modify his actual design files. The office was known for always being open to young creators.
A pop-up shop designed by Justin Saunders of the brand JJJJound will open alongside the show, and lectures, performances and workshops will continue for about a month during the exhibition. Details will be announced later. Alex Poots, The Shed's artistic director, who worked with Abloh on an exhibition in 2019, said this retrospective is especially meaningful to him.
If You Go
The exhibition overlaps with the holiday season, so the Hudson Yards area will be crowded. Because entry is timed, it is best to book your preferred date in advance, and free admission for students, teachers and anyone under 18 also requires a reservation. The Shed is right next to the 34th St–Hudson Yards station on the 7 line, and from New Jersey it is about a 15-minute walk from the Port Authority Bus Terminal or Penn Station. It can be combined with a visit to the Edge observation deck in the same complex for a half-day outing.