“Necessity is the mother of all invention” So goes the saying, and so it was that in 1858, trunk packer Louis Vuitton innovated a stackable luggage trunk to ease transportation of the prodigious wardrobes of travelling madams et mademoiselles. In doing so, the wheels were set in motion for a brand now estimated to be worth over $19 billion.
Those wheels are turning faster than ever over a century later, under the skilled tutorship of Marc Jacobs. The brand and its designer, whose signature sense of irreverence and fun has seen models arrive on the catwalk via a full-size carousel and most recently, a moving locomotive engine – complete with steam – are now the subject of a new exhibition: Louis Vuitton – Marc Jacobs.
Two floors of the Louvre’s Musee des Arts Decoratifs, have been dedicated to exhibiting the French luggage icon and its Artistic Director since 2007. “Marc always starts with the bag”, says curator Pamela Golbin of Jacobs’ approach to each collection, and all 53 bags he has designed for LV are among the exhibits – which include those original
trunks – displayed in a larger-than-life “chocolate box”.
His exceptional brand vision is behind such successful collaborations as those with artists Stephen Sprouse in 2001 and Takashi Murakami in 2003 – the resulting bags creating waiting lists that took the idea of an ‘it’ bag to a whole new level.
If you find yourself in Paris between now and September and have more than a passing interest in art or fashion, don’t miss it.
Louis Vuitton Marc Jacobs is at Musee des Arts Decoratifs until 16 september 2012. The official book of the exhibition by curator, Pamela Golbin, is published by Rizzoli in April.
Words by Aja Wallis
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