Marc Jacobs has an endless love for fashion as a way of interpreting the different facets of femininity through personal style codes, as well as a passion for detail – the accessories, the dresses and the designs in leather, but also the shows and the presentations. Marc Jacobs, who has guided Louis Vuitton creatively for more than ten years, is all this and more. He’s a creator, an observer, an interpreter.
Milan is currently waiting for the opening on 22 September 2011 of a retrospective exhibition, Louis Vuitton – The Art of Fashion. Created by the designer Katie Grand, it’s being shown at the Triennale di Milano and aims to celebrate the long, productive association between the designer and the fashion house.
The exhibition coincides with the opening of Milan Fashion Week as well as the luxury new brand’s store in Via Montenapoleone 2, after seven months of restoration. Inspired by Peter Marino’s blueprint, the store boasts the first Salon de Haute Maroquinerie in the world and the first Travel Room in Europe.
The exhibition is a celebration of artistic director Marc Jacobs’ creativity for Louis Vuitton through the display of 30 key looks, said Pietro Beccari, the company’s executive vice president, who added the designer’s “real strength is his understanding of the brand and its history; he respects its traditions while bringing a breath of fresh air and a touch of fantasy, modernity and creativity.”
Among the pieces in Milan are a cashmere mesh jumper from fall-winter 2000 combined with a tulle skirt from fall-winter 2004 or the coiffeuse dress in silk satin, and the Speedy Multicolor created in collaboration with Murakami from the spring-summer 2003 season. There are also six mannequins made of wood and covered with Louis Vuitton graffiti designed by Sprouse in orange and pink fluorescent colors.
Like Jacobs says: “I don’t think you have to identify a specific woman: I like imagining lots of different types – from wives to lovers. They’re women who want to be noticed for the bag they’re carrying or the coat they’re wearing – they’re extrovert women.”
The exhibition runs from Thursday the 21th of September to the 9th of October.