Louis Vuitton X is being held in Beverly Hills. Image credit: Louis Vuitton
French fashion label Louis Vuitton is looking back on some of its artistic collaborations through an exhibit in Beverly Hills, CA.
Louis Vuitton X delves into 160 years of the brand's creative tie-ups, from its work with Karl Lagerfeld to designs by Zaha Hadid. Through this look back into its archives, Louis Vuitton is pointing to its long history of partnerships, positioning the house within the art world.
Louis Vuitton in LA
Louis Vuitton X opened on June 28 and will run through Sept. 15.
The exhibit is being staged at 468 North Rodeo Drive, a building that LVMH reportedly purchased late last year. The former site of Brooks Brothers has been given a new look for Louis Vuitton X, with neon elements on the exterior.
More than 180 pieces are on display, from Art Deco perfume bottles to made-to-order trunks. Other displays will focus on window displays by the house founder’s grandson Gaston-Louis Vuitton.
The spirit of collaboration is central to the history lesson. On view will be artist reinventions of the Louis Vuitton monogram handbag from Rei Kawakubo, Cindy Sherman and Frank Gehry.
Louis Vuitton’s commissions from Yayoi Kusama and Richard Prince will also be featured.
Open for free to the public, Louis Vuitton X is celebrating the debut of the brand’s Artycapucines Collection.
For the project, the brand tapped artists Sam Falls, Urs Fischer, Nicholas Hlobo, Alex Israel, Tschabalala Self and Jonas Wood to put their own touches on its Capucines handbag.
Louis Vuitton's Artycapucines
Almost all of the artists drew from the natural world. For instance, Mr. Israel replicated the idea of waves and added surfboard fins to his design, while Mr. Falls worked with Louis Vuitton to translate his landscape of wildflowers onto the Capucines.
Ms. Self took reference from Louis Vuitton’s logo, breaking down the elements of the monogram.
In 2017, Louis Vuitton previously merged the worlds of fashion and art in a collection that took inspiration from some of the most recognizable paintings.
Artist Jeff Koons translated his series of “Gazing Ball” artworks, which give a new perspective on masterworks, into a capsule of handbags, scarves and accessories for the fashion label. Aligning with art is one way for brands to add value and novelty to their designs, turning garments and accessories into collector’s items (see story)