Dior Lady Art #2: ten artists give their take on the Dior handbag

The Parisian maison partners with international artists on sophomore Lady Dior Art collection

Lady Dior by Spencer Sweeney

Dior first partnered with a cadre of British and American contemporary artists including YBA peer Ian Davenport last year. Issued as a limited edition run, the Dior Lady Art capsule collection proved a runaway success, prompting the Parisian maison to debut the project's sophomore collection this month, in time for Art Basel Miami. Dior Lady Art #2 sees ten international artists appropriate the luxury brand's couture-inspired Lady Dior handbag as canvas to exuberant effect.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

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.

Sign up

While they all work with different media, for Dior the impressive grouping of artists all turned their eye to the brand's emblematic Lady Dior. First issued in 1995, the top-handle bag takes its cue from the maison's fabled couture ateliers with prestige detailing: there is the laborious Canage criss-cross stitching, mirrored facets and signature charms spelling the brand's name in gold or silver layered hardware. Silver also features in Lee Bul's dramatic rendition; the Seoul based artist and maker of immersive installations imagined a mirror shattering atop her medium sized bag. Requiring 60 attempts, the final product positions dozens of small Plexiglas mirrors at a slant. All around creative force Spencer Sweeney – in addition to artist, his job titles have included DJ, club-owner and musician – looked to process of making art for inspiration. His selection of bags in three sizes dazzle with likenesses of faces, eyes and several handprints; visible brushstrokes and raised pigments remind of art's tactile aspects.

Lady Dior by Friedrich Kunath

(Image credit: contact@fredericleclere.com)

Lady Dior by Lee Bul