170 Years of Louis Vuitton Celebrated in Osaka Exhibition; Monogram Canvas Sample Fabric Shown to Public for 1st Time in World

By Ayaka Kaji / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

16:00 JST, August 31, 2025

An exhibition commemorating the 170th anniversary of the French fashion brand Louis Vuitton is currently being held at Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka. From the fashion house’s historic trunks to the latest collection, more than 1,000 LV items are on display, in addition to more than 200 traditional Japanese craftworks. One of the themes of the exhibition, “Louis Vuitton: Visionary Journeys,” is the deep relationship between the brand and Japan.

Brand founder Louis Vuitton opened a luggage store in Paris in 1854. The exhibition introduces what inspired the brand’s second owner, Georges Vuitton, to create its characteristic Monogram canvas in 1896, among other facts.

Apparently, there is a strong possibility that the patterns on the lightweight and flexible canvas, such as the initials LV and a four-petal flower within a circle, were inspired by Japanese sword-guards and family emblems. At the exhibition venue, visitors can see a sword-guard shaped like a flower with four petals and a trunk decorated with family emblems on the lacquer surface, which was owned by Tokugawa Ienari, the 11th shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate.

Florence Muller, the exhibition’s curator, said that the Monogram pattern and the geometric pattern on the shogun’s trunk, which both remind viewers of plants, have a lot in common.

Among the exhibits is a piece of sample fabric of the Monogram canvas, trademarked in 1897, which is being shown in public for the first time ever in the world. It is a precious item of historical importance that was discovered at the Archives of Paris in 2021.

The exhibition also features a travel trunk made with traditional Nishijin fabric from Kyoto, which contains tea ceremony utensils, as well as Louis Vuitton outfits and accessories designed by the brand’s designers in the past and present, many of which were inspired by items from Japanese culture, such as samurai armor, kimono and kabuki costumes.

Collaborations are taken for granted in the fashion industry today, but it was Louis Vuitton that created them for the first time with a pioneering spirit. Since the brand began manufacturing high-quality, ready-to-wear outfits in 1997, the brand has fused fashion with art and street culture, thereby having an enormous impact on contemporary fashion.

Above all, Louis Vuitton’s collaborations with illustrious Japanese artists and fashion designers, such as Takashi Murakami, Yayoi Kusama, Rei Kawakubo and Nigo, are essential in telling the story of the brand. Some unique works made in collaboration with Japanese artists and designers are featured in the exhibition venue’s kaleidoscope-like spaces.

Muller said she hoped visitors would feel the special relationship between Japan and the brand, which has been passed down through generations.

The exhibition runs through Sept. 17 at Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka, which is closed on Mondays, except Sept. 15. Admission is ¥2,000. Advance ticket reservations are required.