Louis Vuitton opens new Kobe Maison that weds art to luxury in Japan

All Louis Vuitton's Masions were opened after 2005, in prominent cities around the world including Taipei. Each store highlights a different contemporary artist.

Yves Carcelle, chairman and chief executive officer of Louis Vuitton Malletier, said the opening of the Kobe store is very significant in terms of the company's business strategy, and signifies the close and continuing relationship between Louis Vuitton and Japan.

“Our decision to invest into one of our free-standing stores in Kobe in this economical context confirms that Japan, whose consumers appreciate the real value of luxury continues to be an important market for us, and that we have high expectations for the Japanese market,” he said

The two-story Kobe Maison is located at the former site of the prestigious Oriental Hotel. The interior of the store is dominated by a dramatic spiral staircase that links a series of shopping mezzanine platforms. Over the center of the Maison hangs Alyson Shotz's sculpture, titled “A Curve in Space and Time.”

The 67-foot-long sculpture attempts to visualize and embody an eleven-dimensional space. The many lenses on the art piece bends light and surrounding images to create a sense of intense sensory disorientation. The sculpture also changes with light and the time of day.

“I believe it's crucial to understand what space might actually be like, as opposed to what we think it is, based on what we can see and feel in normal experience,” Alyson Shotz said. “I use lenses and mirrors to compel the viewer to question his or her sense of location and position in space.”

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