LOUIS VUITTON VISIONARY JOURNEYS

Courtesy Louis Vuitton

• Architects

Louis Vuitton: Visionary Journeys is now open to the public. Staged across 2,200 square-meters Nakanoshima Museum of Art, eleven thematic galleries are organized to communicate foundational aspects of Louis Vuitton’s identity in four interrelated zones: history, timeless codes, process behind the craft, and cultural dialogues. Rooms are envisioned as distinct sets of a continuous story to provide a spatial diversity that reflects the diversity of the House’s creativity.

photo_credit Courtesy Louis Vuitton — Courtesy Louis Vuitton

Shohei Shigematsu, Partner, OMA: “I’m happy to continue our collaboration with Louis Vuitton – this time in Japan, for the first Visionary Journeys exhibition in a museum. We approached the show as a spatial translation of Louis Vuitton’s legacy—a journey not just through objects but through ideas. The scenography celebrates the trunk not only as a container of belongings but as a vessel of imagination, stories, and cultural exchange. Osaka, with its historical role in trade and craftsmanship in Japan to the world, provided a fitting stage to explore and communicate the Maison’s identity – from its history of craftsmanship to the ever-expanding diversity of reinventions.”

Upon entering the museum, visitors encounter eight monumental lanterns suspended from the ceiling of the five-story atrium. The sculptural columns stack trunk-like forms wrapped in Monogram washi paper in six configurations. The 12.5 meter tall lanterns emphasizing the grand height of the five-story space, while emitting a soft glow that makes a welcoming first encounter to the exhibition.

The journey continues through a dramatic hemispherical installation at the exhibition’s entrance. Made from 138 authentic trunks and mirrored by the glass floor, this structure forms a complete globe—a nod to the theme of exploration. The self-supporting structure is held together solely by the structural integrity of the trunks, showcasing the balance of strength and lightness that defines the Maison’s construction techniques.

Throughout the exhibition, Japan plays a significant thematic role. A dedicated Louis Vuitton and Japan gallery explores the deep artistic and cultural exchanges between the brand and the country—ranging from traditional garments and samurai armor to kawaii culture. Historic and contemporary artworks, garments, and objects from the House and on loan from museums around Japan are carefully choreographed using a simple, modular platforms reminiscent of tatami mats.

Louis Vuitton’s creative legacy and distinct codes are explored in rooms that trace their evolution. In the Origins room, six eras in the brand’s history are woven together on a custom armature hand-woven from real bamboo. This basket-like construction speaks to the shared appreciation for craftsmanship among Louis Vuitton and Japanese culture. The iconic Monogram canvas is explored in two galleries – from first development and inspirations, including pieces from Japan, to classic and contemporary applications. In Expeditions, stories of travel unfold within an inflatable hot-air balloon that serves both as a display structure and surface for projection. Materials creates a dense, transparent archive of foundational materials, with pieces appearing to float in an infinite display. The mansard roof of the Paris Maison Vendôme flagship is translated into a backdrop for Atelier Rarex pieces displayed in a theatrical boulevard recalling Haussmann’s Paris.

Workshop extracts elements of Asnières – arched windows, sawtooth roof, work tables, and tools – creating a set for live demonstrations by craftspeople who can also be observed through mirrored “skylights” from any part of the room. Testing highlights the machines behind the craft, bringing the Louis Vuitton lab to the museum with live testing pieces for strength and durability. In Collaborations, the House’s ever-evolving partnerships are materialized within four mirrored domes, where works of Sprouse, Supreme, Kusama, and Murakami are reflected and reconstituted in a kaleidoscopic display.

Scenographic elements are conceived not just as display mechanisms, but as active participants in the storytelling—drawing from the House’s core design principles and its capacity to reimagine tradition. Trunks become architecture, display becomes landscape, and visitors become travelers through a world shaped by over 170 years of creative evolution.