Yesterday (Nov. 28) marked one year since the passing of Virgil Abloh. Loved ones, fans, and fellow members of the fashion community continued to pour out their words of reflection and praise for the late icon. Today (Nov. 29), his wife, Shannon Abloh, provided an in-depth interview for the first time since her husband passed away.
In a new conversation with The New York Times, Shannon spoke about Virgil’s legacy. Although he was revered by countless people all over the world, Shannon stated she has decided to define her spouse’s legacy with primarily their family in mind.
“It belongs to me, it belongs to his children,” she told Vanessa Friedman, The New York Times’ fashion director and chief fashion critic. “After his passing, so many people came up to me and said, ‘Virgil was my best friend.’ His best friend in the fashion industry, his best friend in the music world. A lot of his collaborators, or even people who maybe weren’t that close to him, feel, ‘I can do this to help his legacy, or I can do that to help his legacy.’ It’s like this train that’s going 500 miles per hour, and I just thought: I have to stay on this train, because if I don’t, I don’t know where it’s going to go. That’s my place and my position.”
Shannon also created Virgil Abloh Securities, which serves to unite the creative director’s ventures. These include Alaska Alaska, a creative studio in London, as well as a joint venture with Nike called Architecture.
Elsewhere in the article, readers are given the first details of several forthcoming events that have been planned in the Off-White creator’s honor. During the next Miami Art Week, there will be a four-day festival organized by VA Securities and Nike that is dedicated to celebrating Virgil’s life. In addition, Shannon will host an inaugural summit of his closest collaborators next spring.