Last week, Louis Vuitton pulled out all the stops to flex their grandiose new vision for the label in a New York press bonanza. The LVMH-namesake crown jewel brand rented out and redecorated a private seven-story Park Avenue Mansion in New York’s Upper East Side—each room highlighted a different theme or initiative. They christened the event “Crafting Dreams,” and it’s part luxury house showcase, and part exclusive exhibition to ooh and ahh at and inspire coveting (mission accomplished). The result wasn’t just a tour of their wares but a moment to be saturated within the entire lifestyle.
Louis Vuitton calls “Crafting Dreams” an “immersive savoir-faire experience.” It was also an opportunity to display the intricate artisanal crafting techniques—an artisan was on hand hand-painting personalized bags with minute details. Other trades will also be on display. The magnificent 1926 townhouse is open by appointment and for private events for press, VIPs, and high rollers until May 5. There was a similar manse takeover last year with a Bel Air estate.
“Crafting Dreams” is Louis Vuitton’s immersive savor-faire pop-up experience. Photo: Brad Dickson. Courtesy of Louis Vuitton.
Like most things Louis Vuitton-connected these days, there is an art aspect to the project. There are Carly Burnell paintings and a commissioned atomized enamel splatter installation by graffiti artist KATSU in the lounge. Visitors exiting the elevator on the top floor are greeted by two boisterous neon and black inkjet print and paint works by Richard Prince; these echo the colorways of men’s creative director Pharrell Williams’s leather jacket that is installed in a vitrine like a totem. The glitzy jacket depicts a cactus and other acrid signifiers of the west and is just one of the sparkling, maximal pieces from his debut collection on display.
Louis Vuitton Objets Nomades Disco Cocoon by Campana. Available at select Louis Vuitton stores, 866.VUITTON louisvuitton.com. Courtesy of Louis Vuitton.
On offer from Williams is the ‘Millionaires Speedy 40’ tote, which features 18-karat gold hardware, a diamond-encrusted padlock, and a hand-painted monogram finish that took 65 hours to complete, all offered in a bespoke trunk. But the sparkling wares had to vie for attention with Nicolas Ghesquiere’s selection of riveting, dream-like evening dresses that were displayed on each floor. One room was devoted to fine jewelry and, across the hall, another to watches where a hip-hop soundtrack was being piped in.
Louis Vuitton Objets Nomades Anemona Table GM by Atelier Biagetti. Available at select Louis Vuitton stores, 866.VUITTON louisvuitton.com. Courtesy of Louis Vuitton.
Elsewhere, there were outlandishly fabulous moments from Louis Vuitton’s limited-edition furniture collection Objets Nomades, like the mosaic-mirrored “Campana Disco Cocoon chair,” which has a pre-game, club-night, and after-hours allure, all combined into one dangling, reflective seat. It also comes in a hot pink and yellow version if mirrored is too staid. The dining room was centered around the Anemona Table GM by Atelier Biagetti. At $107,000, it offers an ultra exclusive undersea anemone feeding style. Another standout was the Campana Brothers’ Bomboca Sofa ($102,000), a chic cloud named after a confection served at Brazilian weddings.
Louis Vuitton Objets Nomades Bomboca Sofa by Campana. Available at select Louis Vuitton stores, 866.VUITTON louisvuitton.com. Courtesy of Louis Vuitton.
There has been a renewed emphasis on trunks ever since the brand’s traveling “200 Trunks, 200 Visionaries” exhibition. Williams’s digital camouflage ones were stacked into a Jenga pile and there was also a new iteration made especially to hold the signature Capucines handbag—presumably most Arty Capucines, the art collab versions of these iconic bags, would fit as well.
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