Lily May Mac Louis Vuitton
Image: Lily May Mac for Louis Vuitton

Lily May Mac—the social media supernova with a casual 3.9 million Instagram followers to her name—was a natural fit to attend Louis Vuitton’s Cruise 2023 show. Aside from the model and influencer’s ethereal beauty (Louis Vuitton’s creative director Nicolas Ghesquiere put his passion for sci-fi on full display for the Dune-esque runway presentation), she looks right at home on the sun-kissed sloped of San Diego, California, where the runway presentation took place.

Ghesquière—who has long staged his Cruise collections in architectural masterpieces around the world, from the Miho Museum in Kyoto to the TWA Flight Centre at JFK airport—chose San Diego because it houses the Salk’s Institute, a working medical facility housed in an exquisite Brutalist space designed by Louis I. Khan. “When I saw its strange harmony, everything clicked,” he explained. “It celebrates intelligence, knowledge and the belief in the power of science.”

The collection itself evoked a post-apocalyptic dreamscape—draped gowns made with heavy jacquard, finished in shimmering details that evoked molten metals—through to fighter-chic ensembles made of low-slung harem pants and cross-body silver and gold harness shirts and the closing trio of shrunken jackets with mega-oversized shoulder details. As we noted in our full review of the collection, every piece evoked a potent mix of heady futurism and a clear reverence for the archive silhouettes and motifs that make up Louis Vuitton’s past. 

Mac joined Gemma Chan, Samara Weaving, Phoebe Dynevor, and Lèa Seydoux in the front row for the Cruise ’23 collection. Here, she shares behind-the-scenes shots taken from the event, exploring San Diego’s remarkable architecture with pieces from the brand’s archive.

Lily May Mac Louis Vuitton
Image: Lily May Mac for Louis Vuitton
Lily May Mac Louis Vuitton
Image: Lily May Mac for Louis Vuitton
Lily May Mac Louis Vuitton
Image: Lily May Mac for Louis Vuitton
Lily May Mac Louis Vuitton
Image: Lily May Mac for Louis Vuitton
Lily May Mac Louis Vuitton
Image: Lily May Mac for Louis Vuitton
Lily May Mac Louis Vuitton
Image: Lily May Mac for Louis Vuitton