Seven artists take on the Lady Dior bag
Top creative talents from the UK and the US have reimagined the house's classic design, blurring the line between fashion and art
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Earlier this year, Dior asked sculptor and artist Marc Quinn to reimagine its classic Lady Dior bag. The resulting collection, comprising matching wallets and clutches to complement the limited-edition designs, drew inspiration from his still-life oil paintings. A bold floral print adorns the side of one bag, with the opposite side featuring the same motif with the colours reversed, while another literally eye-catching design is dominated by a striking blue iris pictured up close.
The fashion house has now teamed up with six further UK and US artists, each of whom bring their own unique vision to this iconic item. The creations will be unveiled in the brand's Miami boutique before being rolled out to its Los Angeles pop-up store, London, China, Dubai and Paris.
US artist Chris Martin has taken a character from his work "Frog 1" and adapted it into a print used on the Lady Dior Small, as well as a range of accessories including a scarf and a cardholder, while other pieces showcase a more abstract side to his work. Brooklyn-based Matthew Porter's graphic style takes inspiration from his fantastical photographic montages depicting cars floating mid air, which have been reproduced in leather form using a marquetry technique to compose the image.
Article continues belowThe Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Drawing from a similarly monochromatic palette, Daniel Gordon's patterned pieces (pictured above) are created from black and white mink, with a dose of colour coming through from the bright charms. For a full-on technicolour fix, Ian Davenport's dazzling creations reflect his contemporary artworks, in which he applies paint on to aluminium or stainless-steel panels using syringes, creating alluring lines that fluidly melt into one another. The effect has been replicated on the bag with the use of silvered leather.
Mat Collishaw's detailed approach draws from nature, featuring a high-definition print of butterflies in motion that has been reproduced on glazed leather. Meanwhile, UK-based Jason Martin has added an extra dimension to the bags, with tactile sculptural curves and folds that sit away from the surface.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com