A couple of weeks ago, the team of Meade Design Group was very fortunate to be in Paris working on a really cool project. While we were there we also had the opportunity to explore and enjoy the city, but also to discover what was new and happening.
Meade Design Group Team
One of my favourite highlights of the trip was the visit to the Fondation Louis Vuitton with my team. Bernard Arnault Chief Executive Officer of LVMH commissioned renowned architect Frank Ghery to design a new space to discover contemporary art, and to create a new cultural experience in one of the most cultural cities of the world.
We all know that Frank Ghery loves to quickly sketch his vision before developing his projects. It always amazes me that once you see the original sketches of the Fondation Louis Vuitton, and see the building with your own eyes you can really see his vision for the soul of the building.
Sketch + Architecture by Frank Ghery
The Fondation Louis Vuitton building is located at the edge of the Jardin Acclimation in the Bois de Boulogne. A ten minute walk from Charles De Gaulle Avenue. The building itself was designed with the idea to create a singular dialogue with its surroundings. Geometric curves and lines match the shapes of the garden, the twelve glass sails play with the light and reflections creating a constant interplay between outside and inside.
This building is relatively new and unknown, but is rapidly gaining the public’s attention with the quality of the work showcased in this impressive setting.
One of my favourite parts is definately the terraces on the roof of the building as you can walk and wonder while discovering the views and the architecture.
The current exhibition being held is “Keys to a passion” which is totally worth seeing as it includes some of the best art pieces from Bacon, Bonnard, Brancusi, Delaunay, Dix, Giacometti, Gallen-Kallela, Holder, Kandinsky, Kupka, Léger, Malevich, Matisse (So impressed with the scale of the Dancers original piece), Mondrian, Monet, Munch (The Scream -A classic that still freaks me out), Nolde, Picabia, Picasso (Always beautiful), Rothko (One of my favourite Rothko’s), Schjerfbeck, Severini.
This exhibition presents a selection of major works from the first half of the 20th century that established the foundation of modernity. By breaking rules, these works of art have become touchstones in the history of art. The exceptional quality of the art pieces and the curatorial work exceeds the visitors expectations.
Mark Rothko No. 46
The Fondation Louis Vuitton has also commissioned a couple of great installations by contemporary artists to dress the building. My favourite was the one by Olafur Eliassion called Grotto. I just loved how this sculptural commission complements the building adding its own vocabulary.
Olafur Eliassion – Fondation Louis Vuitton
The building and the galleries are exceptional, but also the app and web presence that were created for the project are state of the art and worth visiting.
As a designer I love the attention to detail in all the aspects of a project like this. One of my favourite things in this particular project I have to say, is the modern interpretation that was conceived to brand the Fondation Louis Vuitton while maintaing the original typographical solution that was created for Louis Vuitton – Brilliant!
All photographs by Iván Meade
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