It was called a “monumental coupling” when the collab launched 20 years’ ago and to mark the 20th anniversary, luxury fashion house Louis Vuitton and celebrated Japanese artist Takashi Murakami are popping up in London’s Soho to present their global re-edition of the collection. 

Featuring “a new imagining of over 200 pieces” and presented in a dedicated sphere module, the Louis Vuitton x Murakami space, complete with a cafe, we’re told “will be the only one of its kind in Europe”.

From today (9 January), the temporary location becomes a showcase of the “playful roots of the collection, evoking a sense of theatre” with black and pink colour-blocked floors inspired by the world-famous Tokyo modular hotels. A hybrid of retail and immersive design, the conceptual space reveals the full Louis Vuitton x Murakami product offering and will host an archival module boasting pieces from the original collections, a vending machine with special, collectible gifts, a café, as well as a ‘care and repair’ station.

The original, seminal collection under creative director Marc Jacobs was feted “as an unprecedented marriage of art and fashion and the creation of this re-edition pays homage to the joy and originality demonstrated in the shared enthusiasm for colourful aesthetics, creativity and innovation”. 

The pop-up has been created as a “festival of colour and experiences that fully embody the Louis Vuitton x Murakami world. In the archival module, highlights from the Eye Love Monogram and Monogram Multicore 2003 will be showcased in flower-style casing on the walls with the 2003 Monogram Dalmatien, 2005 Monogram Cerise, 2007 Monogram Superflat hand, and 2010 Monogram Multicore also on display as part of an original, site-specific exhibition of the most iconic objects. At the care station, clients can watch as their own pieces from the original collection receive care and repair from a carefully designed repair menu.

Louis Vuitton said of the pop-up’s choice of location on Brewer Street: “Soho is a historic hub for subversive creativity and this temporary Louis Vuitton x Murakami universe adds to that legacy with a spellbinding experience of kaleidoscopic colour and artistry that cements a historic partnership between Louis Vuitton and Murakami; a collaboration that transformed the nature of how art and fashion merge and has endured as a pillar of innovation and delight”. 

It will be open seven days a week until 9 February.