Inside Marc Jacobs' Louis Vuitton Exhibit In Paris

There's no rest for designer Marc Jacobs this spring. Days after he made headlines for allegedly not paying his models (they are paid in trade, not money, he clarified via twitter), Marc Jacobs is back in the news-- but this time for a less scandalous affair. Opening today in Paris at the Musee d'Arts Decoratifs, the 'Louis Vuitton Marc Jacobs Exhibit' will showcase 150 years of Louis Vuitton history, where Marc Jacobs has been the creative director since 1997.

[Photo via]

According to the Daily Beast,

"The goal of “Louis Vuitton Marc Jacobs” is not to tell a chronological story of how the LV monogram became a status symbol and how Jacobs transformed a luggage and handbag house into a fashion brand. Instead, it is meant to offer an impressionistic exploration of each man’s “ah-ha” moments of inspiration and the ways in which they were connected."

The exhibit spans two floors, with one dedicated to displaying the beginnings of the Louis Vuitton empire, when the company only produced trunks intended for upper-class women who traveled often. The other floor pays homage to the modernity that Jacobs brought as creative director, and features pieces from his first ready-to-wear line. Also on display, are various items from Marc Jacobs' many designer collaborations, including bags designed by Takashi Murakami and Stephen Sprouse.

[Striped canvas mail trunk, photo via]

[Marc Jacob's Exhibit via]

According to the museum's website, the exhibit seeks to pose the questions:

"How did they succeed in taking the pulse of their respective periods to innovate and take an entire industry forward?...How did these two personalities, each with their own language, appropriate cultural phenomena and codes to write the history of contemporary fashion?"

The exhibit runs through September 16th, but if you can't make it to Pairs, a coffee table book about the exhibit will be out later this month.

[Bag designed by Takashi, photo via]