Tori BarronESPN Editor
Serena Williams is no stranger to the catwalk, as she has modeled the shows of her own fashion line in the past. But Monday was the first time the 23-time big champion has walked for a big luxury brand during Fashion Month.
On the first day of Paris Fashion Week, Williams paid tribute to his longtime fashion collaborator, the late designer and founder of Off-White, Virgil Ablo.
Off-White, a Milan-based luxury brand, honored Abloh, who died in November 2021 at the age of 41 after a private battle with rare cancer, while presenting his fall 2022 collection – Abloh’s latest contribution to the brand.
The star-studded show (Kendall Jenner, Joan Smalls, Gigi and Bella Hadid, Carly Kloss, Naomi Campbell and Cindy Crawford also graced the catwalk for the occasion) was split in two, with Serena wearing part of the “ready-to-wear collection” for the upcoming season in the first portion.
Notice Serena Williams, model in the Off-White Virgil Abloh memorial show #PFW pic.twitter.com/lAfFQoE6w8
– Vanessa Friedman (@VVFriedman) February 28, 2022
Serena Williams has just entered Virgil Ablo’s latest Off-White show at Paris Fashion Week pic.twitter.com/noXQXQmnel
– Jessica Testa (@jtes) February 28, 2022
After the show, Williams went to Instagram to express his gratitude for the opportunity to honor his friend.
Williams has long been Ablo’s muse, with the tennis star as the inspiration for the designer’s first Nike collection in 2018. The collection, called “Queen” (naturally), included Ablo’s perception of the classic tennis dress with asymmetrical color-blocking, classic Off – White text and a tulle tutu skirt. “I was trying to embody her spirit and bring something fascinating and fresh to tennis,” he said in an official statement at the start. Williams wore the dress in different colors at the US Open 2018.
In 2019, she wore neon yellow sneakers designed by Abloh while attending the Met Gala. She soon rocked Abloh’s original at the 2019 French Open. and the “goddess.”
When Ablo died, Williams was one of a group of celebrities who paid tribute to their favorite designer. “Words cannot express the grief I feel from the death of my friend @virgilabloh,” she wrote on Instagram. “I will always be grateful that I had the opportunity to witness such greatness, such genius and feel the warmth of his smile. It was an honor for me to stand by him. He illuminated every room he entered. Let his beloved family and friends find comfort in knowing how deeply his art has influenced our culture and all of us. I’ll miss you.”