PHOTO COURTESY OF LOUIS VUITTON
To mark 20 years of Espaces Louis Vuitton and a decade of the Hors-les-murs programme, Louis Vuitton unveils ‘Paintings and Banality’ in Osaka, Japan. Staged at Espace Louis Vuitton Osaka, the exhibition centres on Jeff Koons. This is a rare invitation for art devotees to enter the celebrated artist’s universe.
PHOTO COURTESY OF LOUIS VUITTON
The commemorative showcase spans Koons’ practice from the 1980s to his most recent paintings. Notably, the 1988 Banality series takes centrestage. Works such as Woman in Tub and Wild Boy and Puppy appear in porcelain form. Altogether, they underscore Koons’ longstanding dialogue between pop culture and high art.
Then turning to paintings, Koons treats the canvas as a mirror of our visually saturated world. In Monkey Train (Birds), he layers monkeys, birds, horse carriages and trains into one pulsating composition. As a result, the imagery echoes the constant flow of symbols we encounter daily. Similarly, Landscape (Tree) II from the Hulk Elvis series invites a quieter, introspective pause amidst the noise.
PHOTO COURTESY OF LOUIS VUITTON
If Osaka sits on your travel itinerary, make time for Espace Louis Vuitton Osaka at Maison Osaka Midosuji. Head to the fifth floor between 12PM and 8PM daily. There, ‘Paintings and Banality’ by Jeff Koons is now open and free to the public.
