EXCLUSIVE: Louis Vuitton’s New Handbags Are Like Miniature Art to Go
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PARIS — At the inaugural edition of Paris+ by Art Basel last year, collectors were clamoring to buy the Artycapucines handbags on display at the Louis Vuitton stand. It’s no wonder: conceived by leading artists, they’re like miniature paintings on the go.
Vuitton is set to reveal its new crop of bags on Oct. 18 at the art fair. But clients interested in snapping up designs by Billie Zangewa, Ewa Juszkiewicz, Liza Lou, Tursic & Mille and Ziping Wang will again be politely redirected to the brand’s stores, where they will be available in a limited edition of 200, priced at 9,200 euros each.
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The Capucines bag was introduced in 2013 as Vuitton embarked on an upscaling drive and launched higher-priced bags.
Now in its fifth edition, the Artycapucines project has produced a total of 29 designs and capitalizes on the growing convergence between fashion and art, with participants relishing the prospect of sending their creations out on the street.
“I am excited to see how people wear it, style it, and see people interact with it. It is definitely a liberating and exciting opportunity for my work to go beyond the context of gallery walls to everyday environments,” said Wang, the Chinese-born, U.S.-educated artist whose paintings and drawings are inspired by the visual overload of the digital era.
The smallest bag in the collection so far, her mini Artycapucines uses leather patchwork and marquetry in vivid colors to evoke the saccharine hit of a sweet treat. With details like mint candy feet made of resin, and an enamel gingerbread man with LV monogram flower buttons, it’s a three-dimensional project designed to engage the senses.
“When I first began this project, I immediately considered the bag as a moveable sculpture, which is designed to be seen from every angle, creating a continuous image,” she explained.
For Juszkiewicz, who grew up in Poland in the ‘80s and ‘90s, fashion was a portal into her art practice.
“I remember that at that time in Poland the streets were gray. I missed having color and variety around me. I found it all in fashion. I loved looking through fashion magazines, full of color and crazy shapes. It sparked my imagination and creativity,” she said in a Q&A provided by Vuitton.
Her bag design is inspired by Surrealism and 19th-century portraits. Based on her painting “Ginger Locks,” which depicts a woman whose head is a mass of braided hair, it is accented with a pearl necklace. Inside the bag is a small envelope, inspired by the look of 19th-century love letters.
“From the beginning, I wanted the bag to reflect the essence and character of my paintings; we had that in mind through the whole process. Reflecting colors and different textures was crucial for me. I’m impressed with the result that the Louis Vuitton artisans achieved,” Juszkiewicz said.
“By combining various techniques and materials, like the hand-dyed leather and multilayered printing, the final effect is beautiful and sophisticated,” she opined.
Fabric has always been a central component of Zangewa’s work. The Malawian artist, who is based in South Africa, works predominantly by arranging, sewing and stitching fragments of raw silk, often depicting domestic scenes as a way to comment on themes like identity, gender stereotypes and racial prejudice.
For her Artycapucines design, she worked with the Vuitton artisans to recreate her work “The Swimming Lesson” using a combination of high-definition, trompe-l’oeil printing, embroidery and intentionally visible hand-stitching.
“The process of realizing the bag was so educational for me. I learned that there are super-efficient people out there that can realize just about every vision and I was shown that just about anything was possible in terms of rendering,” she recalled.
“I have deep respect for the Louis Vuitton team and enjoyed the process immensely. What I do is really quite basic but I have some understanding of surface and texture and conveying ideas through the exploration of them,” she added.
Sending the bag out into the world is the ultimate satisfaction. “The thought of it being carried by different women all over the world is so exciting for me. It’s like engaging in a collaborative performance piece, where those carrying the bag are the players executing it. Very cool,” Zangewa said.
Launch Gallery: Louis Vuitton's Fifth Artycapucines Collection Photos
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