Louis Vuitton & Andre Launch New Site For 2010 Spring Summer Sunglasses

A few months ago I wrote about Gucci's specifically designed micro site for a particular line of their sunglasses.

Well, seems that luxury brand Louis Vuitton has also decided to launch a micro site of their own for sunglasses. The site has been designed for their 2010 Spring Summer collection of sunglasses with music by Koka, photography by ©LV and ©Andre.



Graphic Studio Louis Vuitton enlisted artist/designer/photographer/entrepreneur Andre Saraiva (aka graffiti artist Mr. A) as the photographer for the 'party pics'; a collection of online photos of models/personalities (including one of himself) donning some of the Louis Vuitton sunglasses. To learn more about André, and his collaboration with Belvedere Vodka, go here.

Below are all the models of sunglasses from the collection proceeded by André's photos.


Z0052, Z0075, Z0282:


Z0105, Z0286:


Z2069, Z0255, Z2083:


Z0275, Z0276:


Z0280, Z0281:


Z0288:


Z0291,Z0287:


Z0292,Z0293:



Z0294,Z0295:


Z0296,Z0297:


Z0298,Z0312:


Z0264,Z0299,Z0300:


Z0301,Z0302:

Z0303,Z0304:


LV answers to questions you might have:

WHY DID LOUIS VUITTON CHOOSE TO DEVELOP A SUNGLASSES RANGE AND WHEN?
The sunglasses collection was launched in November 2005 with the opening of the Champs Elysées store after 2 years of design research to ensure both the highest levels of eye protection and the ultimate in design.

WHY ARE THE SUNGLASSES ONLY SOLD IN YOUR STORES?
From creation to distribution, Louis Vuitton supervises the project scrupulously, as with all its other activities, to guarantee the best product presentation and service.

WHAT MATERIALS DO YOU USE TO CREATE YOUR SUNGLASSES COLLECTIONS?
Our sunglasses are made with the best materials available on the market. The collection is mainly made of acetate and metal. Acetate is a luxury material, the only one to come from cotton rather than petroleum. It is silky, warm and unique. We have also introduced new technology involving laser-cut lens frames. The effect is very light sunglasses with a strong identity.

DO YOU HAVE AN IN-HOUSE DESIGN STUDIO AND IF SO, WHERE?
We have a design studio in Morez in the Jura where the team is able to create sunglasses in 3D and precision models.

WHAT ABOUT THE QUALITY OF THE LENSES USED?
We use the highest quality lenses available on the market. All our lenses offer 100% UV protection. We also have unique LV lenses: LV Landscape and LV RoadscapeTM.

LV Landscape: these exclusive lenses offer excellent eye protection and visual comfort with two special treatments: polarisation and colour enhancement.

LV Roadscape: the LV RoadscapeTM lenses take photochromic technology to a new level.
For maximum comfort, standard photochromic lenses change from light to dark when exposed to direct sunlight (UV rays). This new technology allows the lenses to darken in all types of light. Unlike standard photochromic lenses, they are activated even behind a window or windscreen, blocking out 91% of glare. This makes LV RoadscapeTM lenses particularly suited for driving.

WHO DESIGNS THE SUNGLASSES COLLECTIONS?
As all LV products, the sunglasses collections are designed by Marc Jacobs.

CAN YOU BUY LOUIS VUITTON FRAMES FOR CORRECTIVE LENSES ?
LV's collection is a sunglass collection but the lenses on almost our models can be substituted for corrective ones by an optician.

CAN YOU SPECIALLY ORDER DIFFERENT COLOUR LENSES?
For the moment, this is not possible. In any case, we have a very impressive collection that is sure to satisfy all our LV customers.

DO THE LENSES PROTECT EYES FROM THE HARMFUL EFFECTS OF THE SUN?
Of course! All our sunglass lenses are designed to protect the eyes from UV rays and the harmful effects of the sun as much as possible. Our lenses also aim to improve vision through polarisation (LV Landscape and LV RoadscapeTM models) to ensure maximum comfort.

HOW MANY STORES ARE THE COLLECTIONS AVAILABLE IN?
In almost all LV stores (442 stores).

CAN THE WIDTH OF THE SUNGLASSES BE ADJUSTED IN LOUIS VUITTON STORES?
If it is an acetate model, yes. As acetate is a soft material, the sales assistant can adjust the frames to fit the customer’s face.

IS AFTER-SALES SERVICE ONLY AVAILABLE IN LOUIS VUITTON STORES?
Yes. As we only sell our products in store, we only provide after-sales service in our stores where we can be sure to offer our customers the best possible service.

WHAT ARE THE INSPIRATIONS FOR THE 2010 SUMMER COLLECTION?
The inspiration for the 2010 SS collection is a blend of the natural world with myriad amazing details contrasted with the technological world of experimentation and innovation.

The women’s collection develops the Floral monogram world, taking its inspiration from nature with a language of soft, sinuous lines and volumes, appealing to different types of women: from the elegant woman drawn by the sparkle of stones to the sophisticated seductive woman to the cool, trendy woman.

The men’s collection develops the Damier graphic world, taking its inspiration from avant-garde contemporary architecture and appealing to the classic man, the casual, avant-garde man and the extravagant, egocentric man. This collection is packed with technological content with 3D hinges, original arm end details and pure lines. Colours range from black to honey tortoiseshell to lilac to multicoloured, which is where the “Rainbow“ name for the collection came from.




To learn about the Gucci sunglasses site, go here.

Admir Jahic & Comenius Roethlisberger Immortalize YouTube Videos As Art.

In an attempt to disrupt the haphazard collection of archived videos that YouTube has become, artist duo Comenius Roethlisberger and Admir Jahic transformed the visual (and virtual) language of “broadcasting” into a physical medium by producing illustrations and recreating virtual references by allowing elemental art materials to do what they do best.

The two artists literally captured hundreds of individual frames from popular and bizarre YouTube videos and rendered them in colored pencil on handmade paper.


close-up:

More examples (cropped for better visibility):





Drawings from the project were recently on exhibit at Colette where you can still find some available for purchase:



and here's part of the installation at Miami Basel:
as well as an installation in Kuwait:


Many of the captured frames are from some of the most popular and well-known YouTube videos. Several of these have already sold. I'm sure you'll recognize a few of these. Again, the following images are cropped so you can get a better look at the drawings.














Each drawing measures 21 inches x 31 inches (56cm x 76cm) and is based on a rendered freeze-frame, complete with video title, user ratings and number of views.

Each is available for purchase. Cost is 400 euro for the unframed drawings and 500 euro for the framed drawings.

Size: 21” X 30”/ 56 CM X 76 CM)
Medium: Colored Pencils (CARAN D’ACHE / LUMINANCE) on handmade paper

If you’d like a commission of your favorite YouTube moment, please send the artists the link of the video (send it to ado@invisibleheroes.net). If they like the video, they will select a second to render and draw for you.


Part of the project, WITHOUT YOU BABY, THERE AIN’T NO US, shown below at the Scope Art Fair, Basel, featured 605 framed drawings of frames from the YouTube video "The Star Wars Kid":




A review of the project, WITHOUT YOU BABY, THERE AIN’T NO US by Harlan Levey (Modart Magazine):

When Swiss artists COMENIUS ROETHLISBERGER AND ADMIR JAHIC, showed the first selection of their time intensive project Without You Baby, There Ain’t No Us, visitors to the Scope Art Fair in Miami found the same sort of fascination browsing their unique drawings as they likely do surfing through YouTube channels.

Attracted to pieces for personal and diverse reasons, depending who you spoke with people were drawn to an image itself (the colors of the Dramatic Chipmunk come to mind), as often as they were to the amazing amount of interest in a particular video (more than 12 million viewers have checked out the ‘evolution of dance’ already), or for the sake of nostalgia (I couldn’t resist the image of Little Man vs Big Machine or the making of Thriller, both of which have become historical markers in my life).

There are a number of intriguing and relevant aspects of this project, but that is part of the fun labor of viewing in it and won’t be polluted here. Seeing the work in the context of an art fair, one nearly crass point is revealed and this is that the output of what is actually an extensive and complex research, is succinctly translated into a new medium to produce art, which is affordable, desirable and potentially relevant to us all for various personal reasons.

If there were something like a message shining through, it would not be a direct comment on the phenomenon, but rather on the artists’ view that subjective (often absurd) personal experiences provide as much food for thought as any mediated information can. It is a work that is from people, for people and accessible to all people. In a time of diverse crisis, this democratic idealism and strict work ethic is not misplaced.

The artists amongst their work at the Scope Art Fair in New York:


For more information about the project and the artists visit these sites:
Without You baby
Invisible Heroes
Comenius Roethlisberger

Check out Comenius Roethlisberger's Sweetest Invitation exhibit of famous luxury brand logos made of sugar powder and cocaine here.