Louis Vuitton’s artistic sneakers, combining art with manufacturing expertise

[On the cover: the sneaker as a white canvas that in the video is transformed by the personal interpretation of the artists]

Artists’ creativity does not produce art alone, but also craftsmanship drawing on traditional Italian know-how. These two expressions of art are perfectly combined in the LV Trainer, a Louis Vuitton sneaker featured in a series of new artistic interpretations in the exhibition “White Canvas: LV Trainer in Residence”, open 24 February through 16 March in the maison’s temporary store in the former Traversi Garage in central Milan. Three artists express themselves on a white leather sneaker made in the top-quality manufacturing plant in Fiesso d’Artico, on the Riviera del Brenta, which becomes a blank canvas for artworks produced by Lady Pink and Lee Quiñones and a tribute to the late artist Rammellzee, who passed away in 2010. The shoe becomes a three-dimensional object transformed by the personal vision of the artists involved in this initial project, due to be followed by others in the future; the inspiration is an idea by the late artistic director of the men’s collections, Virgil Abloh, who designed the LV Trainer for the S/S 2019 fashion shows.

In the evocative setting of the exhibition, inspired by a contemporary art gallery in an unfinished industrial space, the sneakers hand-painted by the artists are displayed alongside the industrially produced final versions, offered as a limited edition (sold in the shop for three weeks only), as well as a selection of three paintings from the LV Collection: “Celtic Piece” by Lady Pink; “Incantation of the Queen Bee” by Rammelzee; “SPIT #1” and “Tablet #3″ by Lee Quiñones, and a giant sculpture of a white LV Trainer, on which patterns created by the artists are projected. Lady Pink and Lee Quiñones have hold a live painting session during the exhibition opening. The three famous artists were chosen to represent the maison’s historic roots in art and fashion because they represent the New York underground scene of the eighties: Ecuadorian  Lady Pink, who participated in the rise of graffiti-based art and is still a cult figure in the hip-hop community; Lee Quiñones of Porto Rico, who rose to fame after painting whole subway cars and murals; and Rammellzee (1960-2010), who expressed himself in artworks embracing a variety of disciplines, from painting to sculpture and performance art.

After Milan, the first exhibition location, chosen as the location for the unveiling of “White Canvas: LV Trainer in residence” for its ties with Italian footwear production and ability to express the expert craftsmanship of the Venetian artisans, the styles will be dropped in the United States and China.