Celebrating 200 years of its founder with a new NFT video game, novel and television series, Louis Vuitton kicked off these bicentenary celebrations titled ‘Louis 200’ with a book, a documentary and 200 collaborations (yes, you read that right).
The bicentennial birthday celebrations under the banner of “Louis 200” unfurled on Aug. 4, exactly 200 years after the founder’s birth. On that day, windows unveiled Vuitton’s global network of boutiques that showcased trunks reimagined by 200 notable people from a variety of backgrounds and disciplines, including illustrator Jean-Philippe Delhomme, interior designer Pierre Yovanovitch, Paralympic swimmer Théo Curin, art director Willo Perron, and architect Peter Marino, whose hardcore harness trunk takes cues from his leather-daddy wardrobe. “Louis: The Game” can also be downloaded now by both Apple and Android users.
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Born in the small French town on 4 August 1821, Vuitton moved to Paris where he officially founded the maison in 1854. And the rest was history post this quest. Just like Vuitton, the main character of the game is Vivienne, an LV mascot, who is on a quest to find 200 birthday candles for Louis’ 200th birthday. An adventure and story of origin will unfold as Vivienne embarks on this search for each candle. Called Louis: The Game - complete with embedded NFTs.
460 Louis Vuitton stores around the world will showcase a unique series of trunks in their respective window display, some designed by artists and celebrities, to celebrate the bicentennial milestone. Later in the year, a fictional novel namely 'Louis Vuitton, L’Audacieux' penned by French author Caroline Brognard will be released in regular and deluxe editions. After that in October, an English translation will follow in November. Even a documentary titled 'Looking for Louis' will premiere for the world to see on Apple TV.
Another activation will include a large-scale triptych by acclaimed American artist Alex Katz that will be unveiled sometime in the fall. What's most anticipated is the up and coming 'cuvée spéciale' from Veuve Clicquot which is an LVMH-owned Champagne brand. As we take a walk down memory lane, no milestone will be left unturned in terms of celebrating all this history behind the man, the brand and the innovations that live on today.
And it begs the question — do leaders, especially those thinking way ahead of their times always know that their purpose is larger than them? Is their vision so at large, that they are able to imagine a life beyond theirs?
(Sources: Instagram/Google)
