Givenchy Announces Artistic Director Matthew Williams’ Departure and Future Plans

Al-Riyadh – Asmaa Al-Sayed – Paris: The French house “Givenchy” announced on Friday that its American artistic director, Matthew Williams, will leave after three years of cooperation, with a desire to focus on his own streetwear brand, “Alyx 9SM 1017”.

Givenchy explained in a statement that “this change will become effective on January 1, 2024,” and that its team will prepare “the next collections” pending “the announcement of a new design chapter.”

The designer, who was appointed artistic director in June 2020 in the midst of the Covid crisis, succeeding the British Clare Waight Keller, contributed to giving the house a modern touch, and to infusing its collections, known for their aristocratic elegance, with street fashion.

This bold mix of genres did not go down well in fashion circles, where his brand, Alex, the name of his eldest daughter, is very popular.

Matthew Williams previously worked with rapper Kanye West, like Virgil Abloh, who served as artistic director of the men’s department at Vuitton before his sudden death in November 2021 as a result of cancer.

Givenchy is the second house affiliated with the LVMH luxury products group after Louis Vuitton to employ a street fashion designer in order to attract a young audience.

Givenchy CEO Renaud de Lescan thanked Williams for “all the energy he brought to the ancient house,” noting that “his creative and contemporary collections created a new dynamism and found their audience.”

As for Williams, he said that working for Givenchy was his dream, and that he had striven during the last three years to “perpetuate the legacy of (the house’s founder) Hubert de Givenchy” while adding his own vision.