As we know, fashion never stays stagnant. We have changing seasons, Spring/Summer rolling into Fall/Winter, colours and silhouettes in vogue one minute and out the next, one could assume it's hard to catch up. Having these past few years mark so many transitions in the industry, it comes to no surprise that another fashion house is undergoing a change in its dictatorship. This time, the Parisian house founded by Kenzō Takada, Kenzo, bids farewell to its artistic director Felipe Oliveira Baptista after only two years at the helm.

 

Taking the reigns from Opening Ceremony founders and co-creative directors Carol Lim and Humberto Leon in 2019, Felipe Oliveira Baptista was known for imbuing sportiness and a refined sense of abstract minimalism back into the house, imparted from his previous eight years as creative director behind sport-inspired French house Lacoste.

 

“I have been honoured to serve this amazing house and the legacy of its founder Kenzō Takada. I would like to thank my teams for their talent and dedication,” Felipe Oliveira Baptista told WWD.

 

With an emphasis on comfort and a mission to resurrect the essence of Kenzo as represented in its archives, Oliveira Baptista's residency at the fashion house saw the resurgence of the artistic and avant-garde, a conscious step away from the streetwear inspired Kenzo forged by his predecessors Carol Lim and Humberto Leon.

 

Having being the second announcement within the time frame of a week of changing of creative directorship within the LVMH group, the departure of Felipe Oliveira Baptista caught the world by surprise. Having even received praise by founder Kenzō Takada before his passing from COVID-19, the reasons behind Felipe Oliveira Baptista have not been classified. LVMH house and Kenzo will look into moving the fashion brand onto its new chapter, its new artistic director currently undergoing appointmentship and left undisclosed.