Louis Vuitton

Louis Vuitton was a French box-maker and packer who founded the luxury brand of the same name in 1854. He was born in 1821 into a farming family. He ran away to Paris at the age of 13 and arrived two years later, becoming an apprentice at a box-making and packing workshop. In 1853, he was appointed the personal box-maker and packer of Napoleon Bonaparte's wife, Eugenie de Montijo. Improving upon the traditional round topped trunks, Vuitton introduced stackable, rectangular trunks into the market in 1858. He continued to work until his death in 1892, and the company then passed into the hands of his son Georges. The famous LV monogram canvas, featuring diamonds, circles, and flowers, was introduced in 1896. Marc Jacobs was appointed the house's first creative director in 1997 and introduced men's and women's ready-to-wear collections.

Louis Vuitton: Art, Fashion, and Architecture was published by Rizzoli New York in September 2009. It documents some of the most important collaborations between the brand and elite artists, designers, architects, and photographers.

Louis Vuitton: Art, Fashion, and Architecture is featured in Edition: Rizzoli: Fashion