Fashion fans confused over £2,000 Louis Vuitton paint can bag: ‘What happened to Virgil?’

The bag comes from the late Virgil Ablog’s posthumous show

Move over, Balenciaga – Louis Vuitton’s latest collectible bag has entered the limelight.

The French fashion house’s “LV Paint Can bag”, a quirky crossbody bag that will set shoppers back by £1,980, is now available to purchase online.

But fashion fans are divided between praising the unusual design and creativity of the bag and criticising it for appearing “ridiculous”.

The bag was first debuted at the late Virgil Abloh’s posthumous Men’s Fall/Winter 2022 runway show in January.

Abloh, who was the artistic director of Louis Vuitton and the first African-American to head a French luxury fashion house, died of cancer at age 41 in November 2021.

The paint can bag, styled like a real paint can with a chrome metal handle and a flip-top lid, comes in multiple colours.

The accessory features the iconic LV monogram, as well as “Handle With Care” and “Flammable” warnings, and the words “Exterior paint Louis Vuitton” and “Maison Fondee en 1854” emblazoned on the front.

Louis Vuitton launched the bag with a new video on Instagram, featuring a model holding several paint can bags in Bangkok.

It captioned the video: “Personal paint can.”

The video garnered mixed responses, with some fans praising Abloh for his vision, while others appeared confused as to why a paint can was being used as a bag.

“Virgil was the only one who made household things fashionable,” one person wrote.

Another described the bag as “so rad”, but one person said it was “la cringe”.

One person wondered: “We finna [sic] just make regular household items couture now. Let me start carrying my kitchen faucet.”

On Twitter, commenters felt strongly about the design, with one person tweeting: “Since when carrying a paint can is considered fashion? This is ridiculous as it can get coz [sic] that’s like 2,900 dollars. Who would want this??”

A second person said simply: “That LV paint can bag is terrible.”

It comes after Balenciaga dropped an accessory for its Autumn/Winter 22 set which the fashion house called the “world’s most expensive trash bag”.

The “Trash Pouch” retails for US$1,790 (£1,470) and divided the internet when it was launched last week.

Abloh’s out-of-the-box designs have left their mark on Louis Vuitton and cemented his legacy as a fashion designer.

In an interview with US Vogue six months before his death, he said: “I operate by my own rules, in my own logic, and I’m not fearful.”