The names that go down in history as the biggest patrons of art and artists in the 21st century may not be those of individuals or families—it’s likely they’ll be those of fashion brands
Stroll through the galleries of the Louvre, the Metropolitan Museum of Art or the British Museum and you’ll find plenty of masterpieces that weren’t created as art for art’s sake. They were custom orders from royalty, the Catholic church or even successful merchants—like the Medici family, who’ve become shorthand for art patronage.
Today, our concept of an artist is usually someone working independently. But with more and more brands keen to benefit from the halo effect of collaborating with artists, fashion houses are becoming major art patrons. The recent Art Basel Miami Beach hosted so many brands it could have passed for an unofficial fashion week. Among them: Bottega Veneta, Loewe, Versace, Miu Miu, Chloé and Gucci.
But why so cosy, and why now?
With traditional marketing methods in decline, companies are looking for new ways to cut through the noise and build their image. By working with artists, brands gain a certain intellectual and creative cachet, while artists reap financial and often logistical support, not to mention increasing the value of their work.
It’s also personal. For fashion industry titans such as Bernard Arnault and François Pinault, art collecting is a passion—and a way of leaving a legacy. For designers, the visual appeal of art is clear. A quick look at the inspirations of Gucci’s Alessandro Michele or Dior’s Kim Jones would reveal the symbiotic relationship between fashion and art. In the past, Michele has said: “Art is about connection. No real artist wants to make a piece and close it in a box so that nobody gets to touch it. In the same way, fashion is about connection.”
Here is a primer on the players:
1. Louis Vuitton
Since it opened in 2014, the Frank Gehry-designed Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris has showcased artists including Damien Hirst, Wolfgang Tillmans, Andy Warhol, Gilbert & George and Louise Bourgeois. In April, the museum is hosting a Cindy Sherman retrospective featuring 170 works, some of which have never been exhibited before.
The museum was created by Bernard Arnault, chairman and chief executive of LVMH Moët Hennessy to support contemporary French and international art, but it also reflects the company’s heritage. Louis Vuitton is no stranger to the art world, having commissioned artists to create windows, perfume bottles and products as far back as the early 20th century. But it was Marc Jacobs, during his time as women’s creative director, who pioneered a new form of artist collaboration for the brand. In 2001 he gave artist Stephen Sprouse free rein over the LV monogram—the first time such a privilege had been granted since its inception in 1896. The graffitied result sold out almost immediately, and an ensuing Takashi Murakami collaboration became one of the most iconic ‘It’ bags in fashion.
Last year the French fashion house held an exhibition in Los Angeles, Louis Vuitton X, about its history of collaborations. It also introduced six new products by artists Sam Falls, Urs Fischer, Nicholas Hlobo, Alex Israel, Tschabalala Self and Jonas Wood.
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