LOUIS VUITTON UNVEILS TAKASHI MURAKAMI’S ARTYCAPUCINES VII COLLECTION AT ART BASEL PARIS

Oct 30

words by PHOEBE GIBSON-DOUGALL

When it comes to mixing art and fashion, nobody has perfected the formula quite like Louis Vuitton. I’m sure I’m not the only one who has lost precious hours of my life trawling the internet in search of a Stephen Sprouse Speedy or a Takashi Murakami Pochette. Luckily for us it appears that somebody at Louis Vuitton has heard our prayers, because the maison has reunited with Murakami for for the seventh edition of the Artycapucines Collection.

image courtesy of LOUIS VUITTON

For Artycapucines VII, the renowned Japanese artist brings his unique vision to 11 interpretations of Louis Vuitton’s iconic Capucines bags and other collector pieces. With this collection Murakami’s kaleidoscopic universe is brought to life once more; everything from his iconic Rainbow Flower motif to his fantastical mushroom characters adorn the Capucines bag. There is even a Capucines that reworks his exquisite 18-metre long Dragon in Clouds Indigo Blue (2011) painting—the Capucines EW Dragon. Elsewhere Murakami reimagines the Panda Clutch as a sculptural masterpiece, meticulously crafting the bag from lustrous silver-tone brass and embellishing it with 6,300 hand-set strass.

Murakami’s Artycapucines Collection is the perfect addition to the Capucines legacy, and the beloved bag—named after Rue Neuve-des-Capucines, the Parisian Street where Louis Vuitton opened his first store in 1854—is the perfect canvas for his whimsical characters. So I hope like me you’ve learned your lesson, and that you’ll snap up a piece of art-fashion history before it’s too late.