This article was published on March 28 and updated April 6
In all the ways that Virgil Abloh's legacy continues to send tremors through the fashion industry, his recent auction records are simultaneously the most engrossing and the least essential.
I mean, quantifying anyone's impact down to a dollar value is pretty tacky, let alone a man who died too young, but it's also fascinating how Abloh's extant reputation continues driving incredible demand for his work.
Witness the latest example of the lingering demand for Abloh's genius, courtesy of Sotheby's.
Part of the Modern Collectibles series, a pair of Abloh-designed and signed Louis Vuitton LV Trainer shoes went for a truly jaw-dropping final bid, nearly doubling the $12k estimate.
Apparently inspired by Miami sports teams, these shoes didn't drop as part of the Louis Vuitton x NBA collab or city-specific sneaker collection but, like the other LV Trainers, they were made in Italy by hand (each pair reportedly takes seven hours to complete) and, according to Louis Vuitton's website, originally retailed for $1,220.
With an "'AIR' ABLOH" scrawled on the side by the man himself, they're now worth over 10 times as much, apparently.
The owner also provided two truly amazing Polaroid snapshots of himself with Abloh getting the shoes signed.
It's not clear if this guy planned to wear this incredible outfit or if it was just happy coincidence that he met up with Ablog while flexing a tuxedo-printed T-shirt, Chrome Hearts hat, Eric Emanuel shorts, and Suicoke slides.
Abloh seemed happy, at least. And, yes, whoever won these shoes with a $23,940 bid also got the two Polaroids.
And maybe those are the real prize, hmmm?
Earlier this year, Virgil Abloh's LV x Nike Air Force 1s smashed auction records, raking in over $23.5m in combined profits.
There's also an ongoing auction for a complete set of Abloh-designed Nike "The Ten" sneakers, expected to bring in over $40k.
