Prismatic neon lights, palm trees and beach slides in a shop window on Broadway, in November. What else can a wandering mind do, other than dream of Miami?
Soon, soon…
November 12th, 2017
Tag: wanderlust
LV Loves America
And the feeling is mutual.
Hat trunk in leather, once belonging to Marjorie Merriweather Post
Nicolas Ghesquière embroidered dress worn by Emma Stone at the 2017 British Film Institute Festival
Marc Jacobs feathers headpiece
With this last, highly instagrammable chapter, we end our walk through the history of a House whose name became synonymous with travel. Have you packed your wardrobe/hat/shoe steamer trunks yet? Me too! The question now is… where do we go next?
at the American Stock Exchange Building, through January 7th, 2018.
Admission is free
November 12th, 2017
LV & friends
Yayoi Kusama
Robert Wilson
The Music Room
Since the founding of the House of Louis Vuitton, exacting customers have been able to place unique special orders to fulfill their private purposes and dreams. There is no fantasy or extravagance that cannot be packed. Shower, trunk, altar trunk, bed trunk or cigar trunk – in every situation, Louis Vuitton matched the traveler’s ambition and unique needs with equal expertise. Musical instruments, fragile and delicate, are probably the most vulnerable items to pack. Whether a violin, a guitar or the conductor’s baton, cases were designed by the trunk-maker as protection and enhancement.
Supreme
Skateboard trunk
Cindy Sherman
Studio in a trunk
at the American Stock Exchange Building, through January 7th, 2018.
Admission is free
November 12th, 2017
L’eau de Voyage
Because no voyage is complete unless accompanied by fond memories.
And nothing evokes fond memories faster than an exquisite fragrance in an elegant glass bottle.
As delicate as our very existence. As enduring as the spirit of a true traveller.
***
Louis Vuitton perfume bottles designed by Camille Cless-Brothier in early 1920s.
L’Arbre pleureur, enameled crystal perfume bottle; design by Camille Cless-Brothier, 1922.
at the American Stock Exchange Building, through January 7th, 2018.
Admission is free
November 12th, 2017
LVoyage – Voyage
In the nineteenth century, the evolution of transportation reduced distances. Steam vessels were put into service in the 1830s, linking Europe to the Americas. Railways in 1848, the invention of the automobile in the 1890s, and the advent of commercial airlines in the 1900s ushered the world towards new habits and life experiences.
Travelling by train meant that one could relax in their sleeping car, socialize over a cocktail in the restaurant, daydream, work, test the latest fashion trends on their fellow passengers. And, more importantly, one did not have to travel light. Desk trunks, library trunks, whole wardrobe trunks, designed to make travelers feel at home away from home, were considered an integral part of an experienced, sophisticated traveler’s baggage. 
Portable chest (hasami-bako) in black lacquered wood with gold lacquer patterned using the hiramaki-e technique, Edo period, late 18th and 19th century
Ideale Library trunk in monogram canvas, 1927
Desk trunk in natural cowhide, once belonging to Frank J. Gould, 1928
Jenner & Knewstub Berry’s fitted travel bag in leather, ca. 1864
Client records. For each client the house creates a record detailing special orders and customization requests, 19th to 20th century
Milo Anderson, silk satin nightdress worn by Lauren Bacall in ”Young man with a horn”, 1950
Brettes hat/shoe trunk, vanity case in monogram canvas
Alzer suitcase and Stratos case, all once belonging to Lauren Bacall
Satellite suitcases, vanity case, Deauville bag in monogram canvas once belonging to Elizabeth Taylor
Jeanne Lanvin hostess dress, worn by Mary Pickford, Winter 1948-49
at the American Stock Exchange Building, through January 7th, 2018.
Admission is free
November 12th, 2017
LVolez – The art of traveling light
In the early twentieth century, Louis Vuitton closely followed innovators who, from the airship to the airplane, blazed new trails in the air. To equip aviators and then passengers, the Aéro trunk could hold ”2 pieces of clothing, 1 overcoat, 10 shirts, 3 nightgowns, 3 pairs of underwear, 3 waistcoats, 6 pairs of socks, 12 handkerchiefs, 1 pair of shoes, 18 detachable collars, gloves, ties and hats” all weighing less than 57 pounds. Its dimensions were identical to the Aviette, a more feminine version.
The dimensions of the Aéro trunk were:
H12.99in x W32.28in x D18.11in
H33 cm x W82 cm x D46 cm
All things considering, an early twentieth century Aéro trunk would still be every airline’s darling, even in today’s ever restrictive rules and shrinking space.
Louis Vuitton by Marc Jacobs long dress and cropped jacket with long skirt, S/S 2013
Marceau travel bag in cotton canvas, attributed to Dora Maar, c. 1950
Champs-Élysées travel bag in cotton canvas, once belonging to Madame Henry-Louis Vuitton, ca. 1950
Louis Vuitton by Sofia Coppola, SC Bag in monogram canvas, 2009
Boris Lipnitzki
Outfits by Paul Caret, next to a Nieuport airplane equipped with a Delage motor, Le Bourget (Seine-Saint-Denis), 1929
Model of the Blériot XI airplane, 20th century
Heures d’absence perfume, 1927
at the American Stock Exchange Building, through January 7th, 2018.
Admission is free
November 12th, 2017
LVoyagez – A Roadtrip
Organized between 1924 and 1925 by André Citroën, the Croisière Noire was primarily an ambitions anthropological and technological mission. Traveling through Algeria, Mali and the Congo aboard vehicles (such as the Gold Scarab and Silver Crescent half-track) developed especially for this excursion, the crossing was marked by physical and technical achievements, as well as scientific, ethnographic and geographic accomplishments. The House of Louis Vuitton accompanied the expedition at the request of Mr. Citroën. Special orders [for photos, see first post of this series] were made so as to offer trunks that were suited to climate, modes of transport and the practicalities of daily life for the explorers (tea sets, toiletry kits, etc.). The second expedition organized by André Citroën, the Croisière Jaune, took place a few weeks before the official opening of the Colonial Exposition of 1931, with the objective of crossing the legendary Silk Road through Asia.
Chauffeur’s kit in vuittonite canvas, 1910
Dornac, 100 à l’heure travelling coat in Scottish wool twill, ca. 1923
Ladies’ flat hand bags in Morocco leather, ca. 1910
Driving googles, ca. 1900
Louis Vuitton by Marc Jacobs coated cotton coat, F/W 1998-99
Special car trunk for motobloc vehicles in vuittonite canvas, ca. 1908
at the American Stock Exchange Building, through January 7th, 2018.
Admission is free
November 12th, 2017
Louis Vuitton – In the beginning
Yan Pei-Ming
Louis Vuitton as a young man, 2015
In 1906, a reference catalogue precisely inventoried items and luggage from Louis Vuitton. The trunks that would make the House a success were already there.
Louis, Georges and Gaston-Louis Vuitton posing with craftsmen in the courtyard of the Asnières-sur-Seine workshops, ca. 1888
Collage workshop at Asnières-sur-Seine, ca. 1903
Ideale trunk in natural cowhide, ca. 1903 with accessories from the 1900s
Paris suitcase in natural cowhide leather, 1914
Restrictive trunk in monogram canvas, once belonging to Gaston-Louis Vuitton, ca. 1925
Shoe trunk for thirty pairs of shoes in monogram canvas, once belonging to Yvonne Printemps, 1926
at the American Stock Exchange Building, through January 7th, 2018.
Admission is free
November 12th, 2017
Next stop, Louis Vuitton
After Paris, Tokyo and Seoul, it had to make a stop in New York City.
Curated by Olivier Saillard and designed by artistic director and set designer Robert Carsen, the exhibition ”retraces the adventure of the House of Louis Vuitton from 1854 to the present” in ten chapters (previously they were nine but for New York a tenth one has been added, entirely devoted to America and the City).
So, let’s pack our bags and Fly, Sail, Travel for a few days, together with LV. Adventure and grand style guaranteed. What say you? We’ll start with a cruise…
Bed trunk in damier canvas once belonging to Gaston-Louis Vuitton, 1892
Speed bag in monogram miroir vinyl, F/W ’06-’07
Sylvie Fleury Vuitton bag, 2001
Azzedine Alaïa, Panthère Alma bag, 1996
Alzer suitcase in nomade natural leather, created for Wes Anderson’s film ”The Darjeeling Limited”, 2006
Back to front:
Steamer trunk in zinc once belonging to the Count de Pimodan, 1895
Special trunk in zinc, 1899
Suitcase in coated canvas, custom-made for the Yellow Journey, 1930
Louis Vuitton by Nicolas Ghesquière, Boîte Promenade Croisière in canvas, F/W ’15-’16
Jean Luce for the Manufacture de Sèvres china tea set bearing the Croissant d’Argent Imprint, emblem of Louis Audoin-Dubreuil, ca. 1920-1930
It sits on a Yellow Journey bed trunk in duralumin, 1930
Special car trunk in coated canvas, custom-made for the Black Journey, 1924
Special photographer’s trunk in vuittonite canvas once belonging to Albert Kahn, 1929
Special trunk in vuittonite canvas, 1906
Steamer bag in cotton canvas once belonging to Gaston-Louis Vuitton, ca. 1901
Louis Vuitton by Nicolas Ghesquière City Steamer bag in leather, Cruise 2016
Steamer trunk in vuittonite canvas once belonging to Lili Damita, 1928
Lucien Lelong evening gown, 1937
Tennis shorts once-piece, ca. 1930
Beach shorts once-piece, ca. 1930
Old England coat with belt, ca. 1930
Summer dress with belt, ca. 1930-32
Steamer bag in leather, 1938
Ensemble in crêpe de chine with a black and ivory pattern, ca. 1935
Steamer bags in cotton canvas, 1901
Callot Soeurs evening gown in rust-coloured silk velvet, ca. 1935
at the American Stock Exchange Building, through January 7th, 2018.
Admission is free
November 12th, 2017
Wanderlust
This isn’t art…. it is a crime scene…! – exclaimed a woman close beside me as I was taking photos. That may have been the most accurate description of this installation, yet!
On the chillier side of wanderlust, part of the High Line Art commissions.
November 12th, 2016
The Humble Fabulist 