Photo: Giovanni Giannoni/ Courtesy of Louis Vuitton
Nicolas Ghesquière’s latest collection for Louis Vuitton plays on the subtle and sculptural, with his motifs striking motocross, mod, and a touch of whimsy courtesy of Sun Yitian’s starry eyed bunnies.
In an exclusive interview for Vogue Philippines, Yitian talks to the fashion house on transforming so-called ‘Made in China’ work into pieces of art and their shared creative concepts that go beyond the clothing.
In the Long Museum West Bund in Shanghai, Nicolas Ghesquière’s runway rivered through stark white walls and bright fluorescent lights. As with any Louis Vuitton presentation, location is always carefully considered; at the Pre-Fall 2024 show, its monochrome setting would contrast the house’s pre-fall collection, punctuated by 3D cartoon animals printed in full saturation. A collaboration with Chinese artist Sun Yitian, her graphic prints—a cheetah, penguin, zebra, and pink bunny, whose starry eyes held the house’s fleur de lys—decorated the fronts of leather-strapped car coats, shift dresses, and miniskirts that topped asymmetrical chiffon hems.
And these vibrant prints weren’t Ghesquière’s only form of play: After the show of modish silhouettes came experimentation with prints, cutouts, and layering. One padded vest could zip down, extending the shoulder and revealing a shot of turquoise. If the utilitarian take on jutted-out shoulders didn’t harken back to his previous collections already, he shows mini puff sleeves as part of a series of painted florals. Across a palette of deep green and magenta, light pink and orange, and baby blue, yellow, and birch, he presented mini dresses tied up by a sculptural bow and skirts with ruffled trails of fabric. The swishy quality to the pieces acts as a nice bridge from his spring 2024 collection to fall, to which his pre-fall collection finale makes a direct connection.
The last looks held oversized leather vests decked with silver hardware, fur-topped cropped coats, and dresses bubbled up to evocative volumes, in the neutrals diffused across his grand 10th-anniversary show at the Cour Carée du Louvre. With this collection immediately following that sentimental, self-referential show, Ghesquière’s designs have never felt more assured. As he pulls from his design signatures and imbues in them a sense of newness, he spurs a line of direction toward a destination we can’t wait to traverse next.
Below, the fashion house speaks with Beijing-based artist Sun Yitian on their vibrant collaboration for the Louis Vuitton Pre-Fall 2024 collection, which speaks to cultural significance and creative concepts that go beyond clothing.
What were your initial impressions on collaborating with Louis Vuitton?
I was excited about this collaboration with Louis Vuitton from the very beginning, because it transforms artworks into products, which is not to say just a simple appropriation of images, but an extension of my work on a conceptual level. My creations start with so-called ‘Made in China’ goods. These products are manufactured in factories and distributed around the world at extremely low prices. As the main subjects on my canvas, these items, which may initially seem unremarkable or even cheap, then become expensive pieces of art. “In East Asian thinking, there are no pre-deconstructive concepts such as originality, origin, or identity. On the contrary, it begins with deconstruction, “creating within deconstruction, where creation itself is deconstruction. And thanks to this collaboration with Louis Vuitton, the images in my work are once again deconstructed. It transforms these humble items into genuine luxury goods.
How do you feel about your artwork being translated into a wearable product?
The connection between paintings on a canvas and the viewer is somewhat static and silent, a form of observation with a certain distance. However, when my artworks are translated into clothing, bags, or perfumes, they become much closer to people, and this interaction is lively and unpredictable. It creates an equal relationship of use.
Have you found any synergies between the work of Louis Vuitton and your own work? In terms of process, creativity, savoir-faire, vision?
During my last trip to Paris, when discussing design concepts with the Louis Vuitton women‘s studio, I saw a series of fabrics that drew inspiration from the colors of my work, as well as prints of my works on different materials. This allowed me to get close to so many intricate techniques. I was particularly impressed by Nicolas’ [Ghesquiére] creativity, as some of the products truly amazed me. While he uses my work as inspiration for this series of products, these products in turn gave me many wonderful ideas.
For your original artworks used in this collaboration, were there any challenges in the process of creating them?
Firstly, there was a challenge in the painting style, in how to depict what we perceive as cheap and rough “objects” using a classical brushstroke and balancing light and shadow in color. In still life paintings from art history, classical brushstrokes are mostly used to depict exquisite silverware, vibrant flowers, and plump fruits. However, I wanted to use this brushstroke to portray products from assembly lines that are not so finely crafted. These objects symbolize the production dynamics and the historical context surrounding them. Secondly, there was a challenge in communicating concepts. For example, the rabbit in my painting is a highly prolific animal, and I racked my brains over what symbol to reflect in its eyes.
What do you hope to express through this project?
Back in the day, stuff used to outlive people. But nowadays, especially since the post-industrial era kicked in, things have just blown up and multiplied around us. Everything gets swapped out so last, with goods having shorter and shorter lifespans. The manufacturers who produce these plastic toys probably never imagined that their toys would end up as designs on Louis Vuitton bags. I think that many things we buy are temporary, but what really matters is the world they create around us.
How do you hope people will feel when they see this collaboration and wear the pieces?
I don’t want people to just see this as a collaborative bag or a limited-edition perfume with a rabbit or a duck on it. I want them to dig deeper and grasp the cultural significance and creative concepts woven into this product collaboration. And for those who own these items, I hope it’s more than just wearing a stylish piece of clothing.
