TakashiMurakami

Art Basel Miami Beach: It's About the Art Again

Filed under: Art

Art Basel Miami Beach starts on Thursday, and the word "test" is being used instead of "expectation." Even though there have been signs this month that the art market is turning the corner (or at least trying), caution remains pervasive, and the market is still seen to be fragile. The fair's organizers have said that profits will be down at least 20 percent for everyone involved, because of lower prices and a decline in the number of exhibitors.

Sixty of last year's participants have dropped out already, and the number of satellite art fairs around Art Basel Miami Beach has fallen from 22 to 16. Layout changes are taking the shift in participation and making it benefit those who remain. Exhibit space has been increased by 20 percent, and booths in the main art galleries area will be larger, as a result. This is where most of the action is. Eighty-five percent of the dealers have come back, and the number of stands has increased from 265 to 270.

Though prices are expected to be down at the Miami fair this year, artists and galleries aren't giving their work away. Emmanuel Perrotin, the Paris gallery, is trying to move Takashi Murakami's "Warp," painted this year, for $1.5 million. The same gallery is also pushing a Duane Hanson sculpture for $425,000 and a photographic print by Paola Pivi for $33,000. Edward Tyler Nahem, a first-timer at Art Basel Miami Beach, has a room full of paintings by Alejandra Icaza, which are selling for $35,000 a piece.

The crowd in Miami is likely to be a return to past decades, in which art collectors and investors -- rather than what Todd Levin, director of Levin Art Group calls the "fashionista crowd" -- dominate the scene. Art Basel Miami Beach thus might become an art fair again.

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Tags: art, art basel, Art basel Miami Beach, art exhibit, art exhibits, art fair, art galleries, Art Gallery, art market, art show, ArtBasel, ArtBaselMiamiBeach, ArtExhibit, ArtExhibits, ArtFair, ArtGalleries, ArtGallery, artist, ArtMarket, ArtShow, artwork, new york, NewYork, paris, Takashi Murakami, TakashiMurakami, todd levin, ToddLevin

Louis Vuitton: Art, Fashion and Architecture

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Art, Books

A lavish new coffee table book from Rizzoli titled Louis Vuitton: Art, Fashion and Architecture is a seductive anthology of the famed French fashion house's collaborations with an international group of elite artists, architects, designers, and photographers, including Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, David LaChapelle, Annie Leibovitz, Takashi Murakami (whose updated LV monogram is featured on the cover) Richard Prince and Stephen Sprouse. Beautiful images are interspersed with critical essays that examine and position Louis Vuitton's patronage, under the guidance of Artistic Director Marc Jacobs, during "one of the most fertile periods of contemporary art and design." The book is divided alphabetically so as to serve as a sort of encyclopedia of the many collaborations, commissions and sponsorships Vuitton, a cornerstone of the LVMH luxury goods empire, has engaged in over the years.

Tags: Annie Leibovitz, AnnieLeibovitz, architecture, fashion, Frank Gehry, FrankGehry, Louis Vuitton, LouisVuitton, luggage, LVMH, Marc Jacobs, MarcJacobs, Richard Prince, RichardPrince, Rizzoli, Takashi Murakami, TakashiMurakami, Zaha Hadid, ZahaHadid

Takashi Murakami's Latest Vuitton Isn't A Handbag, It's A Movie

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

The latest collaboration between artist Takashi Murakami and Louis Vuitton isn't something you wear, it's something you watch. His latest work for the brand is called Superflat First Love, an anime short film. The movie was directed by anime-master Mamoru Hosoda and is based on Murakami's ideas and characters and of course there is plenty of Louis Vuitton product placement as well.

As Fast Company reports this is the second anime that Murakami has created for Louis Vuitton. The first, Superflat Monogram is after the jump.

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Tags: anime, louis vuitton, LouisVuitton, takashi murakami, TakashiMurakami

Continue reading “Takashi Murakami's Latest Vuitton Isn't A Handbag, It's A Movie”

The Brothel Prince & His Louis Vuitton Rolls-Royce

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos, Wealth, Crimes and Misdemeanors

Spotted in Monaco recently was this pimped-out Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe customized in a Murakami multicolored Louis Vuitton monogram, belonging to the infamous Prince Marcus von Anhalt. Von Anhalt, who's said to have essentially bought his title - Prinz von Anhalt, Herzog zu Sachsen und Westfalen, Graf von Askanien in full - by paying Zsa Zsa Gabor and her ninth husband Frédéric Prinz von Anhalt millions of dollars to adopt him, is one of Germany's largest and most high-profile brothel and nightclub owners.

He refers to himself as "Prince Germany" and apparently uses the Rolls to promote the Royal Race, a Gumball 3000-style exotic auto rally he launched last year. The Prince, who's been known to pal around with Pamela Anderson, claims to be a millionaire "in the three digit range" and to own 26 cars plus luxury real estate in several countries including Monaco and Dubai, attended by 12 bodyguards and 25 servants. This looks to us like not only a crime against taste but exactly the kind of thing LVMH's lawyers love to sue over.

[via JamesList]

Tags: Germany, Louis Vuitton, LouisVuitton, Monaco, Murakami, Pamela Anderson, PamelaAnderson, Prince Marcus von Anhalt, PrinceMarcusVonAnhalt, Rolls Royce, Rolls-Royce, RollsRoyce, Royal Race, RoyalRace, Royalty, takashi murakami, TakashiMurakami, Zsa Zsa Gabor, ZsaZsaGabor

Collector Sues Louis Vuitton Over Handbag Fabric Sold As Art

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Art

Usually Louis Vuitton is on the suing end of lawsuits but it currently finds itself as the sued. Clint Arthur, who purchased several works by Takashi Murakami at the Vuitton boutique set up at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, is suing both Vuitton and the MOCA. Arthur first filed a lawsuit a year ago over a lack of proper documentation in regards to the two limited-edition prints he bought for a total of $12,000 in 2007. But now Clint Arthur considers himself the victim of a fraud after finding out, through an interview that the show curator Paul Schimmel did with ARTINFO in 2007 tthat the prints are made from the same materials as Murakami handbags. Basically Arthur could have bought himself a handbag for around $1,000 with the same fabric and some bonus hardware too.

Louis Vuitton says the blurring of art and commerce is part of the Murakami experience. Vuitton points out that Arthur has declined an offer of $12,000 plus interest which Vuitton alleges shows that the suit is just a bid for publicity and profit. Arthur for his part seems to be angry and driven by an urge to get to the bottom of the motives of both Murakami and Louis Vuitton. A hearing is scheduled for Monday on the motion to dismiss from Louis Vuitton.

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Tags: louis vuitton, LouisVuitton, museum of contemporary art, MuseumOfContemporaryArt, takashi murakami, TakashiMurakami

Murakami Craze the Latest Victim of Recession?

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

Has the craze for Japanese artist and Louis Vuitton collaborator Takashi Murakami's work become the latest victim of the looming recession? In May, art world observers were astounded when Murakami's onanistic sculpture My Lonesome Cowboy, estimated at $3 - $4 million, ended up going for $15 million at a Sotheby's auction. Many expected a similar result Saturday evening when Phillips de Pury put another major Murakami work up for auction in London. However, the 21-ft. sculpture Tongari-kun (above), estimated at $6 - $7.8 million, did not draw a single bid, Bloomberg reports.

Moreover, Murakami himself was in the auction audience, no doubt wanting to witness the windfall in person. He took the snub well, however; as nothing but silence answered the auctioneer's calls, the artist burst out laughing. Some insiders said Murakami had been considering staging a big bucks solo auction like the one so successfully run by Damien Hirst, but he may rethink that now, at least until the economic picture improves. Hirst of course looks even more brilliant for staging his $200 million sale right before the financial markets really went to hell in a handbasket.

Tags: Contemporary Art, ContemporaryArt, Damien Hirst, DamienHirst, Louis Vuitton, LouisVuitton, Sculpture, Takashi Murakami, TakashiMurakami

Abramovich's Girlfriend Parties with Supermodels in Moscow

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Events, Art

Our friends at Kempt spotted Dasha Zhukova, Russian oligarch / Luxist mascot Roman Abramovich's gorgeous 27-year-old girlfriend, partying with supermodels and movie stars at an A-list art gallery opening in Moscow the other night. Zhukova (right) rubbed elbows with the likes of Russian supermodel Natalia Vodianova (left), sexy star of several ad campaigns, at the opening for megabucks art dealer Larry Gagosian in a former chocolate factory. As we reported recently, Abramovich has bankrolled a new Moscow art gallery for Zhukova, which will mount a major Francis Bacon exhibition in 2010. At the Gagosian show, works by the likes of Jeff Koons and Vuitton collaborator Takashi Murakami were on display.

Tags: dasha zhukova, DashaZhukova, Francis Bacon, FrancisBacon, Gagosian Gallery, GagosianGallery, Jeff Koons, JeffKoons, Kempt, Larry Gagosian, LarryGagosian, Moscow, natalia vodianova, NataliaVodianova, Russia, Supermodels, takashi murakami, TakashiMurakami

Marc Jacobs Sick of Louis Vuitton Collaborations

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Handbags

As Louis Vuitton's latest line in collaboration with an outside talent hits stores, the fashion house's designer Marc Jacobs says the increasingly frequent projects have gotten out of hand. Vuitton's new collection designed by Comme des Garçons' Rei Kawakubo just went on sale in Tokyo, but unlike previous LV collections by Takashi Murakami (far right, with Jacobs) and Richard Prince, Jacobs complains that he had no creative input on Kawakubo's, New York magazine reports.

"I've kind of warned everybody up there [at LV] that I think they've gotten a little too into this idea ," Jacobs says. "I'm glad that everybody gets behind it, but what they don't realize is that I do it at a pace that maintains the brand's integrity and seems really right, and I think that sometimes everybody loves a good idea so much that they kind of go too far and it kind of kills it." This could be an indication that despite the massive profits brought in by the trendy collaborations, they could be coming to an end soon, or at least slowing down considerably.

Gallery: Louis Vuitton Collaborations

Tags: Comme des Garons, CommeDesGarons, Louis Vuitton, LouisVuitton, Marc Jacobs, MarcJacobs, Rei Kawakubo, ReiKawakubo, Richard Prince, RichardPrince, Takashi Murakami, TakashiMurakami

Louis Vuitton Still Hot for Eva Herzigova

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

It appears that Louis Vuitton's love affair with '90s supermodels is a lasting one. The luxury brand has brought back Czech stunner Eva Herzigova, who starred in last season's Richard Prince-themed ads (above), for its new fall campaign. The futuristic new ads, shot by fashion photog duo Mert and Marcus at the Unisphere in Queens, feature the latest line of Vuitton bags including the new Takashi Murakami "Monogramouflage" design. Herzigova, who has starred in LV campaigns in years past, inspired the design house's classic "Eva Clutch" that my colleague Star Sutherland wrote about last month. See the gallery for images from the new campaign and more.

Gallery: Eva H. & LV

Tags: Ad campaigns, AdCampaigns, Eva Herzigova, EvaHerzigova, Fashion, Louis Vuitton, LouisVuitton, Richard Prince, RichardPrince, Supermodels, Takashi Murakami, TakashiMurakami

$70 Million Francis Bacon Stars in Sotheby's Sale

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

A Francis Bacon triptych painted in 1976 is expected to fetch about $70 million in the star sale of Sotheby's Contemporary Art auction in New York on May 14. If the work, billed as the most important privately-held Bacon extant, does max out despite all the hand-wringing going on, the price will eclipse Impressionist claptrap like this $40 million Monet while still falling far short of some puffed-up Picassos. (The middle panel is pictured here; see the image gallery for the complete piece.) Back in February, a Bacon triptych sold for $46.1 million at Christie's in London, slightly below estimate, though the one currently on offer is the better work in our opinion.

Also included in the stunning sale is Mark Rothko's 1956 Orange, Red, Yellow, expected to fetch in excess of $35 million; Jean-Michel Basquiat's beautiful Untitled (Prophet I), est. $9 - $12 million; Robert Rauschenberg's 1963 Overdrive, est. $10 - $15 million; Richard Prince's Millionaire Nurse, est. $3.5 - $4.5 million; a 1986 Andy Warhol self-portrait, est. $2 - $3 million; an untitled Cy Twombly, est. $1.5 - $2 million; and a very naughty manga-inspired sculpture by Louis Vuitton collaborator Takashi Murakami, valued at an astonishing $3 - $4 million.

Gallery: Sotheby's Contemporary Art Auction