Alonzo Mourning asking questions
LOUIS VUITTON PRESENTS LOUIS VUITTON ART TALKS WITH VIK MUNIZ
Miami, Fl – The Louis Vuitton Art Talk series made its Miami debuted on Sept. 7, with an intimate discussion between renowned Brazilian artist, Vik Muniz, and Gringo Cardia, Creative Director of SPECTACULU. Mr. Muniz is a frequent collaborator with SPECTACULU, a Brazilian non-profit institution that educates at-risk youths in art, design and photography.
Louis Vuitton-Vik Muniz
“Louis Vuitton’s relationship with the world of art dates back to our founder, and continues to evolve and expand to this day,†said Valerie Chapoulaud-Floquet, President and CEO of Louis Vuitton North America. “The Louis Vuitton Art Talk series is a vital part of our art initiatives worldwide, and we are fortunate to feature an artist of Vik Muniz’s caliber at our first-ever Miami Art Talk. Louis Vuitton’s ongoing dedication to the arts runs parallel to our support of arts education initiatives around the world, and we are delighted to celebrate our recent move to Aventura with Vik’s new installation, and to give our support to the students of SPECTACULU.“
George Lindemann, Tiffany Chestler, & Terence Riley
The Art Talk coincided with the display of Muniz’s art installation, Innumerable, at Louis Vuitton Aventura’s dedicated art space. As part of this inaugural exhibit at Louis Vuitton Aventura, Muniz has created a vibrant, wood and canvas sculpture inspired by Louis Vuitton’s iconic “LV†logo, in honor of Louis Vuitton’s longstanding relationship with contemporary art. Composed of 23 individual logos stacked upon a single base, the sculpture is covered in printed canvas, illustrated with colorful drawings and art work that Muniz created in collaboration with students from SPECTACULU.
Cathy Leff
Daniel-Milewski-guest-Fredric-Snitzer
Vik Muniz with Students from SPECTACULU
Launched in 2006 in the UK, Louis Vuitton Art Talks is an ongoing cultural program designed to provide invited audiences with a unique and exclusive personal insight into the life and work of the artist. Previous talks in the series have featured Xavier Veilhan, Ruben Toledo, Vanessa Beecroft, Dinos and Jake Chapman, Sam Taylor-Wood, Tracey Emin, Chris Ofili and Antony Gormley. In October 2010, Louis Vuitton and MoCA hosted an intimate discussion between Richard Prince and Jeffry Deitch at the home of Edythe and Eli Broad in Malibu, CA, marking the North American debut of the Louis Vuitton Art Talk series. This was followed by a conversation between the French artist, Xavier Veilhan, and Philippe Vergne, Director of Dia Art Foundation, at the unveiling of Veilhan’s large-scale art installation, Mobile, at the Louis Vuitton Fifth Avenue Maison in December, 2010; and by an evening with renowned artist and illustrator, Ruben Toledo, in conversation with Editor-in-Chief of :The New York Times Style Magazine, Sally Singer, at Louis Vuitton Soho in March, 2011.
Vik Muniz, Valerie Chapoulaud-Floquet, & Gringo Cardia
Criselda & Michael Breene
Trudy Cejas, Ambra Medda, & Terry Schechter
Laure Heriard Dubreuil & Ambra Medda – in Louis Vuitton
Iran Issa Khan, Laure Heriard Dubreuil, & Miky Grendene
Oscar & Carole Seikaly
Panoram
ABOUT LOUIS VUITTON AND ART
A symbol of elegance and style throughout the world, Louis Vuitton has cultivated a close relationship with the world of art since its founding in 1854. Inventing the art of travel, Louis Vuitton and his successors kept pace with a rapidly changing age, working with the most accomplished engineers, decorators, painters, photographers and designers of the day. This fascination with ever-new forms of expression grew through the subsequent decades and continues today under the guidance of its artistic director, Marc Jacobs. Following on from Louis Vuitton’s previous collaborations in the 1980s with painters such as César, Sol LeWitt and Olivier Debré, Marc Jacobs has since invited some of the world’s most renowned contemporary artists to join forces with Louis Vuitton, increasing the points of exchange between art and fashion to an unprecedented degree. Among these renowned artistic partnerships, Takashi Murakami, Richard Prince, and the late Stephen Sprouse interacted directly with the Maison’s iconic Monogram, freely appropriating its forms and visual identity. Collaborations between Louis Vuitton and other artists have taken a variety of forms: shop window designs, site-specific art installations for stores, contemporary art exhibitions at the Espace Louis Vuitton in Paris and the acquisitions of artworks for the Maison’s own collection. In the same spirit, Louis Vuitton has called upon an international pantheon of architects to design its stores, including Jun Aoki, Kumiko Inui and Peter Marino.
Susie Wahab & Criselda Breene
Arturo Sandoval & Sam Borkson
ABOUT VIK MUNIZ
Born in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 1961, New York-based artist Vik Muniz began his career as a sculptor, before gradually becoming more interested in photographic reproductions of his work. Often incorporating unlikely materials into this photographic process, Muniz is perhaps best-known for his 1997 series, Pictures of Chocolate, and 2006 series, Pictures of Junk. His work has been exhibited worldwide, meeting with commercial success and critical acclaim alike, and his solo show at MAM in Rio de Janeiro was second only to Picasso in attendance records. Muniz’s collaborative work with Brazilian landfill workers was the subject of the 2011 Academy Award nominated documentary, WASTELAND.
Vik Muniz
Ines Rivero
Ambra Medda & Zaha Hadid
ABOUT GRINGO CARDIA
Gringo Cardia is one of Brazil’s most sought-after designers in the world of performing arts and video. He has successfully integrated the three disciplines in which he works – architecture, graphic design and theatrical staging – designing sets for hundreds of theatrical productions, music shows and award-winning music videos. In 2000, in tandem with respected Brazilian actress, Marisa Orthin, Gringo founded SPECTACULU, a School of Scenic Arts, Design and Photography offering support and professional development to young people in high-risk environments in and around Rio de Janeiro.
Tracy & Alonzo Mourning
Lolo Sudarski & Virginia Balcazar
Laure Heriard Dubreuil in Louis Vuitton
ABOUT LOUIS VUITTON
The world leader in luxury, Louis Vuitton has been synonymous with the art of stylish travel since 1854. Since 1987, it has been part of L.V.M.H. / Moët Hennessy – Louis Vuitton, the world’s most prestigious luxury goods group, which is headed by Bernard Arnault. Since the arrival of designer Marc Jacobs, in 1997, it has extended its expertise to women’s and men’s ready-to-wear, shoes, watches and jewellery and sunglasses; combining traditional craftsmanship with flair and innovation to create a complete lifestyle experience. Today, Louis Vuitton has a worldwide network of 458 stores.
Find out more about Louis Vuitton at www.louisvuitton.com
