| EVENT REPORT 11.12.09 8:00 AM |
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A Forest of Flora Marks Launch of Louis Vuitton's Saks Boutique
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 | The garden setting for Louis Vuitton's launch at Saks Fifth Avenue
Photo: Jeff Thomas/ImageCapture |
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Like its three-part homage to Stephen Sprouse in January, Louis Vuitton's event Tuesday night was anything but subdued. The two-hour launch that heralded the French fashion house's 2010 cruise collection and its first women's concept store in North America planted guests amid a living garden of trees, foliage, and flowers on the third floor of Saks Fifth Avenue.
Hosted by Maggie Gyllenhaal, Louis Vuitton North America president and C.E.O. Daniel Lalonde, and Saks Fifth Avenue chairman and C.E.O. Stephen Sadove, the night entertained a bevy of well-heeled models, editors, and celebrities, including tennis champ Serena Williams, Vogue publisher Tom Florio, and Vanity Fair executive fashion editor Alexis Bryan Morgan.
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Louis Vuitton, Saks Fifth Avenue, Partners in Health |
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| INFLUENCES 09.22.09 9:00 AM |
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New Louis Vuitton Book Focuses on Integrating the Brand and Art
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 | | Jun Aoki & Associates' terrazzo façade of the Louis Vuitton Ginza boutique in Tokyo is embedded with translucent marble squares. |
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Louis Vuitton: Art, Fashion, and Architecture documents the iconic French luxury brand’s collaborations with leading international artists, architects, designers, and photographers. The 400-page anthology (with 400 color illustrations), out today from Rizzoli New York, includes an A-to-Z list of those who have worked with the company over the years—Vanessa Beecroft, Frank Gehry, David LaChapelle, Takashi Murakami, Stephen Sprouse, and Zaha Hadid, among others—on advertising, fashions, boutique designs, and commissioned art projects.
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Louis Vuitton |
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| NEWS 05.20.09 4:01 PM |
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In the News: Celebrities Return to Washington Social Scene, Life Ball Draws 40,000
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Vienna Swells During 2009 Life Ball: An estimated 40,000 people visited Vienna, Austria, over the weekend to take part in the 17th annual Life Ball, Europe's largest H.I.V./AIDS charity event. The night ended up something of a combination between a black-tie benefit and Mardi Gras, with Bill Clinton and Eva Longoria Parker speaking to the crowd about social responsibility and Pamela Anderson and Katy Perry dressed as sea creatures in an ocean-themed runway show. Held at Vienna's town hall, the event also included a pool filled with more than 600,000 gallons of water, filled with dancers dressed as sea monsters, jellyfish, and mermaids. [NYT]
Obama Administration Keeps Celebrities in Washington: Obama's presidency has brought a resurgence of celebrities to Washington—and not just for big events like the inauguration and the White House Correspondents' Dinner. From official White House events to local campaign stumping for Virginia gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe, celebrities including Will.i.am, James Earl Jones, and actor-turned-White House staffer Kal Penn have not been strangers to the town's social scene. Event planners in Washington should strongly consider beefing up their step-and-repeats. [Examiner]
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Life Ball, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Will.i.am, Louis Vuitton, Richard Prince, Bravo, Gossip Girl, History Channel |
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| EVENT REPORT 01.12.09 4:04 PM |
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Louis Vuitton Launches Collection With Sprouse Homage
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 | The Stephen Sprouse tribute at the Bowery Ballroom
Photo: Billy Farrell/PatrickMcMullan.com |
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Louis Vuitton doesn't do things small—the Thursday-night launch for its new Stephen Sprouse collection was comprised of three separate events, including an elaborate after-party for hundreds of guests at the Bowery Ballroom. In a tribute to the late artist and designer, everything from the walls to the furniture referenced Sprouse's iconic 1980s punk designs. Attended by designers, models, and other friends of the French fashion house, the event was packed by 10 p.m. and featured a performance by Debbie Harry.
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Louis Vuitton, Stephen Sprouse, Debbie Harry |
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| NEWS 01.07.09 11:18 AM |
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Louis Vuitton to Launch Collection With Debbie Harry
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Many companies may be reigning in event spending, but French fashion house Louis Vuitton is going all out for the launch of its new Stephen Sprouse collection. Scheduled for tomorrow, the line's New York debut involves a bold marketing effort for the SoHo store and three events. According to WWD, the company is planning to honor the late fashion designer and artist by covering the facade of its boutique on Greene Street with vinyl and tagging the surface with spray paint. As an additional tribute, the window will feature a large neon light installation of Sprouse's iconic rose pattern.
The night of the launch starts with a cocktail reception at the store, includes another event at the Wooster Street Gallery, and ends with a concert at the Bowery Ballroom. The latter will include a performance by Debbie Harry (who hit the stage last month for the opening of SoHo's Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Annex) and music from DJ Jus Ske.
In other fashion news, the rag trade still seems to be suffering from sluggish retail sales as more designers pull out of hosting runway shows during Fashion Week. Monique Lhuillier and Naeem Khan are the latest additions to a list of fashion houses who have downsized to a presentation format; others include Vera Wang, J.Mendel, DKNY, Betsey Johnson, and Carmen Marc Valvo. Yesterday, PR representative Paul Wilmot confirmed Lhuillier's and Khan's decision for New York magazine, but stated the change was not a budget-conscious move. —Anna Sekula
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Louis Vuitton, Fashion Week, IMG Fashion, Monique Lhuillier, Naeem Khan |
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| EVENT REPORT 04.07.08 1:04 PM |
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Murakami After-Party Re-Creates L.A. Event in New York
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 | Mirror Men from Acroback performed at Murakami's bash.
Photo: Keith Sirchio |
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Two and a half weeks is probably not the preferred time frame in which to pull together a world-renowned artist's private party to follow a celebrity-filled museum gala. At least Cara Kleinhaut of Caravents had one thing going for her when she was called in to produce the event to follow the Brooklyn Museum's annual ball, which this year celebrated Takashi Murakami: She had done it once before.
Back in November, the artist hired Kleinhaut's firm to plan a similar bash, held after the opening of the artist's exhibition at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art. Less than three weeks before the Brooklyn Museum's Louis Vuitton-sponsored event, L.A.-based Kleinhaut got the call asking if she'd do it again, this time in New York. "The biggest challenge was the time constraints," the producer said prior to guests' arrival at Soho's Aglow Studios on Thursday evening. (Town cars and shuttles provided transportation for those attending the Brooklyn event.) "Two weeks ago I was here doing a site survey." (Shameless plug: She logged on to BizBash.com to find a space.)
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Takashi Murakami, Brooklyn Museum, Louis Vuitton |
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| GUEST QUESTIONS 04.04.08 6:24 PM |
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Kanye and Murakami Placemats Are Big Hits at Brooklyn Ball
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 | The Murakami-designed placemat
Photo: BizBash |
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Last night, hundreds hiked to the Brooklyn Museum for the institution’s annual ball, an event that got a big boost this year from Louis Vuitton, which sponsored the affair and built a pop-up store in one of the galleries. Celebrating the Takashi Murakami exhibition, which opens tomorrow—and honoring Atlantic Yards developer Bruce Ratner—the gala drew museum patrons, art enthusiasts, members of the media, and even some uninvited locals who voiced their opinions on Ratner with an angry protest. In 2003, the Tokyo-born artist collaborated with the French design house to create cartoon-and-monogram-patterned handbags; a new print, the "monogramouflage" pattern, is the latest product to emerge from the partnership.
The colorful, art-filled event ran past 11 p.m., entertaining attendees with a performance by an energetic Kanye West and an auction of LV products and Murakami artwork. Outside the guest entrance in the museum parking lot, among valet cars and shuttle buses waiting to chauffeur guests home, we asked attendees for their take on the evening. Many raved about West and the Murakami-designed placemats (a big hit at the Museum of Contemporary Art's Murakami gala in Los Angeles, too), and Vogue’s Anna Wintour stopped for a moment to gush about the “fabulous” auction. Here's what else we heard.
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Brooklyn Museum, Takashi Murakami, Bruce Ratner, Louis Vuitton, Vogue, Kanye West |
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| NEWS 03.26.08 11:11 AM |
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Vuitton Store to Pop Up at Brooklyn Museum's Murakami Exhibit
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Following in the footsteps of the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, the Brooklyn Museum will house a pop-up Louis Vuitton store as part of its Takashi Murakami exhibition, which runs April 5 through July 13. Announced by the museum on Monday, the shop will be placed on the fifth floor of the Morris A. and Meyer Schapiro wing for the duration of the exhibit and will sell the Vuitton-Murakami multicolored monogrammed merchandise as well as limited-edition products signed by the artist.
The fashion house will underwrite the construction and will be responsible for the operation of the store. Naturally, Louis Vuitton will host the museum's April 3 gala to celebrate the opening of the exhibition. The event will feature an auction of special items created by Murakami for Vuitton.
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Louis Vuitton, Takashi Murakami |
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| ASK BIZBASH 11.07.07 12:41 PM |
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Where Can You Find Aerial Performers?
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 | An aerial performance by Acroback.
Photo: Eva Mueller |
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From fashion shows to product launches, gravity-defying entertainment at events has been on the rise lately. For a splashy way to capture guests’ attention (without taking up too much real estate), here are a few performance troupes specializing in aerial stunts.
For underwear brand 2(x)ist’s spring 2008 show during Fashion Week, Party Productions NYC brought in performers who did an acrobatic routine over the runway with Carmen Electra. The company’s specialties include working with silks, hammocks, harnesses, and trapezes. Pricing varies according to the performers and the amount of rigging required.
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Louis Vuitton, 2(x)ist, Jeffrey Modell Foundation |
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