10 years after her successful first collaboration with Louis Vuitton, Yayoi Kusama has teamed up with the maison once again.
Cover 10 years after her successful first collaboration with Louis Vuitton, Yayoi Kusama has teamed up with the maison once again.

The Japanese artist and priestess of polka dots tells us why her second fashion collaboration with the maison is a full circle moment

In another universe, one where Yayoi Kusama is not an artist with a prolific, seven-decade career and sell-out art shows around the world, the Japanese nonagenarian would have certainly been a fashion designer.

Her label, Kusama Fashion Company, would sell dresses covered in her signature polka dots or, even more daringly, holes that exposed their wearer’s breasts or buttocks. And today, when cut-out clothes are less of a shock than they would have been to the average, mink-coated Bloomingdale’s customer 60 years ago, Kusama would be a fashion star.

Read more: You’ve Heard of Yayoi Kusama—Here’s Why You Should Care

As it turned out, Kusama still became a fashion star—but her story played out differently. She debuted Kusama Fashion Company during her stint in New York in the late 1960s, and her radical designs even warranted their own “Kusama corner” at leading department stores in the city, but they proved too provocative.

“At that time, fashion and art were two completely different genres in general, but I have never made a distinction between them. I don’t think of them as separate, because that way I can explore new fields,” shares the artist, who shuttered Kusama Fashion Company when she moved back to Japan in 1973. Since 1977, she has been voluntarily living in a mental health facility in Tokyo, where she continues to work as an artist and even make her own clothes.

 

Like Kusama, Louis Vuitton has a history of connecting the dots between fashion and art. Between the 2000s and early 2010s, former Louis Vuitton creative director Marc Jacobs invited artists such as Stephen Sprouse, Takashi Murakami and Richard Prince to leave their mark on the maison’s bestselling monogram bags.

When the fashion designer approached Kusama for a collaboration, the two bonded over their shared attitudes towards creation, and how it informed their identities.

“I can’t imagine a life other than being an artist,” says Kusama. “For me, all mediums of expression are essentially the same and all are important. I always aim to be the avant-garde of all of them.”

Mirroring how her polka dots “obliterate” her sense of self, as Kusama often explains about her paintings and sculptures, her first Louis Vuitton collaboration in 2012 blotted out the boundaries between art and fashion. Bags, shoes, silk scarves and dresses were dotted, further expanding Kusama’s universe from beyond her imagination and into reality. And everyone wanted a piece of Kusama couture.

“During my last project [with Louis Vuitton], I received a great response from people all over the world. In this project as well, I would like to share my artistic philosophy and thoughts with everyone,” the artist tells us, referring to her second collaboration with Louis Vuitton, which was teased at the French maison’s Cruise 2023 fashion show.

'gallery right' 'gallery right'
'gallery right' 'gallery right'
Photo 1 of 7 Beyond bags and womenswear, Kusama’s new collaboration with Louis Vuitton also encompasses menswear for the first time.
Photo 2 of 7 Louis Vuitton x Yayoi Kusama
Photo 3 of 7 Louis Vuitton x Yayoi Kusama
Photo 4 of 7 Louis Vuitton x Yayoi Kusama
Photo 5 of 7 Louis Vuitton x Yayoi Kusama
Photo 6 of 7 Louis Vuitton x Yayoi Kusama
Photo 7 of 7 Louis Vuitton x Yayoi Kusama

This time around, Kusama’s polka dots dominate even more of Louis Vuitton’s luxurious offerings. Beyond bags and womenswear, you will spot them on menswear, accessories, fragrances and even the brand’s iconic luggage trunks. Other motifs from Kusama’s art, such as flowers and silver studs, also come into play; this underscores both the breadth of the pop art master’s oeuvre, as well as the world’s deeper familiarity with her art after Louis Vuitton put her in the spotlight.

Comprising over 450 pieces, the collection is expansive enough to be released in two drops in 2023: the first in early January, and the second in late March. Kusama’s latest collaboration with Louis Vuitton comes at a time when such a concept is no longer a novelty, unlike 10 years ago. Fashion brands and artists are cosier than ever, and their worlds often intersect. At the recent Art Basel Miami Beach 2022 in December, Louis Vuitton was just one of the many fashion brands present; it showcased two life-sized wax figures of Kusama by the artist herself, which hardly measured up to the size of her stardom.

Don't miss: A Look Inside the Yayoi Kusama Private Viewing at M+ Gala Presented by Tatler

Tatler Asia
Above Louis Vuitton's Alma BB bag has been reimagined with Kusama's Infinity Dots print
Tatler Asia
Above Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama rendered as Louis Vuitton’s wooden mascot, the Vivienne doll, creating an instant collector’s item.

At 93, Kusama is now the highest-selling living female artist in the world. In 2014, a painting from her Infinity Net series fetched a staggering US$7.1 million at Christie’s, setting a new auction record at the time. While the artist herself hardly ventures beyond the aforementioned facility in Tokyo, her art exhibitions have travelled far and wide, often causing a frenzy for their Instagram-friendly installations such as her Infinity Mirror Rooms.

“I used to live in poverty, not even having enough to eat, but now I am in the best time of my life because I am in an environment where I can devote myself to painting from morning to night,” reveals the artist. For Kusama, art has always represented a path to salvation, and a sense of optimism permeates her vibrant works.

“Like art, beautiful fashion can bring inspiration and joy, and help us to fight boldly against life,” muses Kusama. “I have fought hard to create a new future history with a dedicated avant-garde attitude. I believe that now is an important time for me to create new art, and I put my whole heart and soul into my work every day.”

Besides hype, it is that sense of hope that will attract fashion fans and art collectors alike to her new collaboration with Louis Vuitton, especially as the world emerges out of a turbulent, pandemic-stricken period. Kusama may not have seen success as a fashion designer, but with Louis Vuitton, she is ready to dress us once again.

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