Louis Vuitton celebrates a new chapter of artistic collaboration with The Artycapucines VII – Louis Vuitton x Takashi Murakami Collection, a vibrant exploration of creativity, craftsmanship and cultural dialogue.
Since its debut in 2019, the Artycapucines Collection has transformed the Capucines bag into a blank canvas for the world’s most celebrated contemporary artists. Named after Rue Neuve-des-Capucines, the Paris street where Louis Vuitton opened his first store in 1854, the bag has become a symbol of modern artistry and timeless elegance. In its seventh edition, Japanese artist Takashi Murakami brings his kaleidoscopic imagination to life through eleven striking interpretations that blend fine art, fantasy and the Maison’s unparalleled savoir-faire.
Born in Tokyo in the 1960s, Murakami has built a global reputation for his singular aesthetic that fuses traditional Japanese painting with pop culture, anime, and science fiction. His world is both playful and profound, filled with characters and motifs that challenge conventions while celebrating joy and colour. It is this distinctive spirit that defines his Artycapucines Collection, created in close collaboration with the Louis Vuitton design ateliers.
Each piece reimagines the Capucines bag as a sculptural work of art. The Capucines EW Rainbow reconfigures the bag’s structure into Murakami’s iconic Rainbow Flower motif, radiating optimism and energy. The Capucines Mini Mushroom becomes a psychedelic wonder, featuring one hundred hand-embroidered and hand-polished mushrooms across a mirrored silver surface. Meanwhile, the Capucines Mini Tentacle playfully reinterprets Murakami’s alter ego, Mr. DOB, as a whimsical octopus.
Equally captivating, the Capucines EW Dragon translates the artist’s monumental painting Dragon in Clouds – Indigo Blue into an intricate composition of leatherwork and craftsmanship. The Capucines BB Golden Garden glows with gold-leaf leather marquetry, embodying both grace and artistry. Completing the collection is the Panda Clutch, a sculptural piece fashioned from silver-tone brass and adorned with 6,250 hand-set strass, turning Murakami’s beloved panda character into a glittering masterpiece.
The Artycapucines project now encompasses more than thirty creations by artists including Beatriz Milhazes, Daniel Buren, Vik Muniz, Paola Pivi and Tschabalala Self. It continues Louis Vuitton’s century-long commitment to artistic collaboration, from Gaston-Louis Vuitton’s commissions in the 1920s to partnerships with Sol LeWitt, Yayoi Kusama and Richard Prince, and the founding of the Fondation Louis Vuitton designed by Frank Gehry.
With Murakami’s new vision, the Capucines bag once again stands as a symbol of femininity, imagination and craftsmanship, a perfect harmony between art and fashion.
