Giuseppe Penone the Italian sculptor will be inducted into France’s Académie des Beaux-Arts on Oct. 18 in a Louis Vuitton “green habit.
Louis Vuitton’s menswear studio created an original embroidery in green and gold tones using six different colors of silk thread inspired by the olive branch reinterpreted to evoke the natural aspect of Penone’s work, which explores and seeks to assimilate the natural world, especially trees.
About 500 hours of work were needed to complete the costume, consisting of a tailcoat, white shirt, white waistcoat, and tuxedo pants, as well as the ceremonial scabbard that is part of the uniform. And its placement took around 100 hours.
The embroidery is adorned with a gilded metal thread made by Blanchard, a company with “living heritage” status based in Ardèche, in the South of France.
Pietro Beccari, chairman and chief executive officer of Louis Vuitton will award Penone with an academician’s sword – appropriately made from wood and designed by the artist himself after he is inducted into the Academy by sculptor Jean Anguera.
Penone and Becarri have worked together earlier. When Beccari was the head of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton stablemate Fendi in 2017, the brand commissioned Penone to create a permanent sculpture to stand outside the Palazzo Fendi in Rome’s Largo Goldoni.
Penone who is based in Turin was born in 1947. He has since 1967 been creating sculptures and installations exploring the relationship between nature and the creative process. His sculptures combine a selection of materials such as wood, wax, leather, marble, and bronze, drawn by the transformative forces of nature. Many prestigious museums around the world display his work. These include Tate in London the Museum of Modern Art in New York the Musée National d’Art Moderne in Paris and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles.
Academician’s Uniform for Giuseppe Penone created by Louis Vuitton
