Architecture as a Kaleidoscope of Colors

Art, historical and architectural memory, design and high fashion: Louis Vuitton’s new store and exhibition space in Milan is a mosaic of all these pieces and has revitalized the former Traversi garage in Via Bagutta after decades of inactivity. The rationalist-style building designed by Giuseppe De Min was returned to the community with this new function, while preserving the existing edifice and highlighting the historical significance of the 1930s with structural solutions and innovative colors. The fashion house established in Paris in 1854 has found its temporary home in this space while awaiting the completion of renovation work to its historical location in Palazzo Taverna on Via Monte Napoleone. For clients, the store offers a shopping experience of leather goods, luggage and travel items, textiles, accessories, clothing and shoes in a space that can be likened to a veritable art gallery with its archival photos, paintings and vintage furnishings. The space has welcomed and will continue to host a series of installations that connect products, architecture and temporary exhibitions. The first among these was inspired by the art and recurring motifs of Yayoi Kusama, the Japanese artist considered one of the most influential worldwide today, whose “Infinity Dots” – colorful polka dots – and pumpkins serve as a principal source of inspiration. Both elements, in garish hues and featuring the kaleidoscopic style that has made Kusama appreciated by all generations, were the protagonists of the inaugural show of the new space. The store, just a few steps from Piazza San Babila, represents a renewed collaboration between Kusama and the fashion house from a symbolic point of view. Their first artistic exchange, dating to 2012, started an intertwining of savoir-faire, innovation and creative flair, now echoed in the interior design of the space. 

This rich immersive experience is developed on the ground floor of the building and on the two upper levels, which are set up to display the women’s collection, temporary installations and the men’s collections, respectively. Each is easily recognizable for the prevalence of different colors. The middle floor is dedicated to purely artistic and cultural expositions, which enter into a dialogue with the retail space and give rise to mutual enhancement, as in the case of the Louis Vuitton x Yayoi Kusama collection. The next collection to benefit will be the LV Trainer sneakers. The show White Canvas: LV Trainer in Residence features three limited edition artistic reinterpretations of the sneaker curated by Lady Pink, Lee Quiñones and the Estate of Rammellzee. 

The fusion of the art and fashion worlds permeates to the exterior of the building, becoming already visible from the adjacent piazza, as demonstrated by the Kusama displays. The yellow-black dichotomy and the garments on display in the windows of the ground floor illuminated the street and the windows of the first floor showed off the polka dot pattern, while the terrace attracted the attention of passersby with its enormous pumpkins. These pumpkins, alter-egos of the Japanese artist and her penchant for the repetition of her symbols, were also found for some time on the knolls in San Babila, which were designed by architect and urbanist Luigi Caccia Dominioni. A number of these fiberglass pumpkins were temporarily installed on top of the mounds, reaffirming the complementary relationship between art, fashion and urban fabric. Working with artists is in the DNA of Louis Vuitton: they inspire the creation of new collections, making the fashion house both a center of fashion and culture and carrying forward the value of travel intrinsic to the brand since the very beginning through those works. 

/5

×

Louis Vuitton Store and Exhibition Space | © Stephane Muratet courtesy Louis Vuitton

The conservation of the existing structure was a very important factor in the definition of the new concept, as demonstrated by the fan-shaped, reinforced concrete beams.

Louis Vuitton Store and Exhibition Space | © Stephane Muratet courtesy Louis Vuitton

Louis Vuitton Store and Exhibition Space | © Stephane Muratet courtesy Louis Vuitton

The floor dedicated to artistic and cultural expositions is an homage to the fashion house and to the style of Yayoi Kusama. The giant metal spheres reflect the garments and the space dominated by the “Infinity Dots” pattern, the black polka dots against a yellow background that are the signature of the Japanese artist.

Louis Vuitton Store and Exhibition Space | © Stephane Muratet courtesy Louis Vuitton

The ground floor, dedicated to women’s collections, is easily recognizable for its yellows and pink, while the third floor, displaying the garments and accessories of the men’s catalogue, is dominated by Klein blue.

Louis Vuitton Store and Exhibition Space | courtesy Louis Vuitton

White Canvas: LV Trainer in Residence, the second show in chronological order, launched the new LV Trainer sneaker collection in a limited edition. The iconic leather sneaker was reinterpreted and hand painted by artists like Lady Pink, Lee Quiñones and the Estate of Rammellzee. These internationally renowned artists also did the paintings and installations that give a splash of color to the space.

Previous Next

You might also like:

Interior Design & Contract 06

THE PLAN Interior Design & Contract 6 is the sixth special supplement to THE PLAN dedicated to the contract market and interior design. Out in April 2023 with THE PLAN 145, the publication brings together over 20 of the most significant projects on t... Read More

Paper Version

12.00 €

Add to cart

Digital version

5.49 €

Add to cart