Daily Front Row

2007 July 16

Murakami Magic at MOCA

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(LOS ANGELES) Louis Vuitton, recognized internationally for its work in the arts, is taking its involvement one step further with this fall’s Takashi Murakami retrospective opening at the Museum of Contemporary Art on October 29, as reported.

The luxury leather goods and ready-to-wear brand will open a freestanding Louis Vuitton boutique inside the museum with exclusive, limited-edition merchandise created by Murakami expressly for the exhibition, The Daily has learned. The pop-up shop will be open for a three-to-four month period of time, starting with the © Murakami gala at The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA on Oct. 28. Over 700 guests are expected for dinner, where Marc Jacobs will be honored and Grammy Award-winning producer and artist Kanye West will close the night with an exclusive performance.

Maria Bell is the chair of the © Murakami gala, along with honorary gala chair Eileen Harris Norton.  An honorary committee is in the process of being formed.

Jacobs and Murakami first collaborated on designs combining the Vuitton monogram with the Japanese artist’s bright palette and fantastic creatures, such as Onion Head and Flower Head, for the company’s Spring 2003 collection. The dress code, set by Jacobs, should prove to be as entertaining as Murakami’s delightfully whimsical creations: “Ironic, sometimes dark, somewhat childlike, and whimsical.”

A Vuitton spokeswoman confirmed the company is involved with the exhibition but declined to elaborate.