KCIDigital Archives

The KCI Digital Archives on the KCI website presents image and text information for the objects in the collection, arranged in chronological order.

Backpack [Left], Bag [Right]

© The Kyoto Costume Institute, photo by Takashi Hatakeyama

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Backpack [Left], Bag [Right]

2017

Designer
Louis Vuitton, Jeff Koons
Brand
Louis Vuitton
Label
LOUIS VUITTON PARIS
Material
Canvas leather printed with masterpiece paintings; reflective metallic letters representing the collaboration of Jeff Koons and Louis Vuitton; sheep skin lining, calfskin handles and shoulder strap, and a charm in the form of a rabbit.
Inventory Number(s)
AC13492 2017-15-1AE [Left]
AC13493 2017-15-2AE [Right]

These two items are from the Masters collection, a collaboration between Louis Vuitton and New York-based Jeff Koons, one of today’s most famous contemporary artists. The Masters collection adorns Louis Vuitton bags with works from Koons’ Gazing Ball Paintings series, in which he adds reflective spheres to the front of skillful reproductions of paintings by the Old Masters of Western art. Reflective metal lettering at the center of the bags, indicating the name of the original painter, corresponds to the gazing ball. The two items here depict worldwide famous works—the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci and Water Lilies by Claude Monet.

2010s