Architecture News

A Glimpse into Tomorrow's Metropolis

James Chinlund's Visionary Scenography for Louis Vuitton's Spring-Summer 2027 Show

For Louis Vuitton's Spring-Summer 2027 presentation, American production designer James Chinlund masterfully reimagined the venerable Cour Carrée du Louvre in Paris. He conjured a cutting-edge urban panorama, populating it with a fleet of hovering concept automobiles. Unveiled on October 6th during Paris Fashion Week, this striking installation showcased 34 sculptural vehicles suspended within the museum's courtyard, creating an ethereal city suspended between contemporary reality and an imagined future. Crafted for Nicolas Ghesquière's newest collection, this elaborate set design prominently positioned innovative automotive aesthetics at the core of the runway spectacle.

The Poetic Dance Between Ancient Heritage and Avant-Garde Innovation

The core of this artistic endeavor lay in the compelling juxtaposition of the Louvre's historic architecture with the avant-garde futuristic setup. Beneath the gracefully suspended vehicles, an asphalt-like surface stretched across the courtyard, mapping out a terrestrial path for the models. This arrangement fostered a dynamic interplay between motion and stillness, as the airborne vehicles appeared to be paused mid-flight against the timeless stone facades of the Louvre. Rather than obscuring the monumental structure, Chinlund intricately wove its venerable walls into the narrative, utilizing the grand surroundings to frame his imagined metropolis.

Chinlund's Cinematic Craftsmanship and Enduring Partnership with Louis Vuitton

Chinlund's distinctive creative methodology is a culmination of his extensive experience across film, sculpture, and fashion. Renowned for his production design in films like "The Batman" (2022), the American designer has consistently explored the creation of imaginative worlds through architectural forms and grand-scale installations. His collaborative journey with Louis Vuitton and Nicolas Ghesquière dates back to the house's Cruise 2025 show at Antoni Gaudí's Park Güell in Barcelona, where architecture similarly played a pivotal role in shaping the runway experience.

Reimagining Motion, Elegance, and the Essence of Journeys

The scenography for Spring-Summer 2027 also mirrored Ghesquière's fascination with the intricate dynamics of modern urban existence. While the suspended vehicles evoked images of velocity, urban density, and a perpetually moving city, the collection itself, titled "Ergonomie," embraced a contrasting sense of airiness. It delved into the intrinsic connection between apparel and the moving human form, introducing ultra-light textiles, fluid constructions, and relaxed silhouettes. This deliberate contrast between the sculptural, imposing environment and the garments presented a profound dialogue between the rigid nature of machines and the liberating essence of human motion.

A Transformative Art Installation: Travel Reimagined

Beyond its immediate visual impact, the installation served as a contemporary reinterpretation of Louis Vuitton's foundational ethos: the Art of Travel. Here, the very concept of transportation was redefined through objects that seemed to transcend the conventional boundaries of roads and pathways, elevating ordinary vehicles into captivating design sculptures. Within the Louvre's storied courtyard, Chinlund's floating automobiles presented a fresh perspective on mobility, ingeniously employing temporary architectural elements and cinematic illusions to transform a mere fashion presentation into an imagined, living urban environment.

From Stately Statues to Playful Public Spaces: Reimagining Equestrian Monuments

Reinterpreting the Monumental: Eight Interactive Horse Forms

The Flatland Horse series, created by Studio Deng, offers a fresh perspective on the traditional equestrian statue. Instead of a single, imposing figure, the project presents eight individual horse-inspired elements. These pieces are designed to be touched, climbed, sat upon, and walked through, inviting active participation from the public. The original equestrian form is deconstructed, with each segment taking on a new life as a functional object within the urban landscape. These plywood silhouettes each embody a specific part of the horse's anatomy, rendered in a soft, volumetric manner, while also serving practical purposes such as seating, play structures, or architectural gateways.

Innovative Materials: Birch Plywood and Chenille for Soft, Modular Design

For the Seattle Design Festival in 2026, themed IN[FLUX], Studio Deng showcased two notable pieces from the collection at Lake Union Park. The "Gate Horse" functions as an archway, crafted from segmented plywood profiles that frame the vibrant activity of Lake Union and offer glimpses of the Seattle skyline through its negative space. The "Slide Horse" is engineered with the structural integrity of a bridge, featuring a plywood surface that spans between a staircase and a slide. Its lowered head forms the sliding surface, while the textured mane acts as a protective side barrier. Both installations artfully translate the form of a horse into flat plywood planes, which become more abstract upon closer inspection. Selected bodily features are given depth and tactile appeal through brown chenille fabric, stretched over a waffle-like internal structure of half-inch foam core panels, attached directly to the plywood. This textured material not only hints at the contours of a mane or muscle but also provides a softer, more inviting surface. Constructed from durable ¾-inch, 13-ply birch plywood, meticulously cut and sanded by the design team, these structures are built for longevity. The "Slide Horse" was ingeniously designed in three modular units, secured with nails, bolts, and L-brackets, allowing for rapid assembly and disassembly. Following the festival, both pieces were unbolted, flat-packed for easy transport, and reassembled in a courtyard in Issaquah, east of Seattle, ensuring these temporary art installations could continue to enrich new environments.