You can find art in the word “heart” — and also plenty of heart in the world of art.
In a new philanthropic initiative, Sotheby’s and Louis Vuitton are teaming to auction 22 “exceptionally remade” Artycapucines handbags, with net proceeds benefiting the likes of UNICEF, Médecins sans Frontières, The United Negro College Fund, Teach for China, World Central Kitchen, Opendorf Afrika and RED, which fights AIDS.
Every year since 2019 Vuitton has invited six contemporary artists to use its Artycapucines bag as a canvas for their creativity. They are typically sold in a limited edition of 200 by each artist, and sold in Vuitton boutiques worldwide. Last year they were priced at 8,000 euros.
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Now 22 of its artists have agreed to lend their signatures to make their customized creations even more collectible and covetable.
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Each is to be recreated using the same materials — which were not always easy to find — and artisanal techniques, with the artist scrawling his or her name under the flap and on the carrying case, a monogram Louis Vuitton hat box based on a 1924 design.
Conversation starters for sure, each Artycapucines handbag boasts a unique backstory, and is realized with intricate embroideries, marquetry, inkjet printing, thermo-molding and other painstaking techniques.
The participating artists are Amélie Bertrand, Daniel Buren, Sam Falls, Urs Fischer, Gregor Hildebrandt, Donna Huanca, Huang Yuxing, Alex Israel, Liu Wei, Peter Marino, Beatriz Milhazes, Vik Muniz, Jean-Michel Othoniel, Park Seo-Bo, Paola Pivi, Ugo Rondinone, Tschabalala Self, Josh Smith, Jonas Wood, Kennedy Yanko, Zeng Fanzhi and Zhao Zhao.
The auction will be conducted online between June 28 and July 12, with opening bids starting at 16,000 euros. As a teaser, all 22 bags will go on display at Sotheby’s Paris from July 1 to 5, overlapping with some of couture week in the French capital.
According to Vuitton, its collaboration with Sotheby’s handbag and accessories department is a first, “but entirely in line with its support of emerging and independent artists and designers.”
For example, Sotheby’s recently hosted Quartet and Brilliant & Black, two sales showcasing independent goldsmiths and emerging Black jewelers.
The Capucines bag was introduced in 2013 as Vuitton embarked on an upscaling drive and introduced higher-priced bags.
Over the years, Vuitton has also collaborated with such art greats as Sol LeWitt, Richard Prince, Takashi Murakami, Jeff Koons and Yayoi Kusama.
Founded in 1854, the French maison traces its close relationship to the arts back nearly a century when Gaston-Louis Vuitton, grandson of its namesake founder, began commissioning artists to create store windows and art for Vuitton boutiques.