Espace Louis Vuitton

Both legendary pioneers in transportation and travel, André Citröen asked Louis Vuitton to equip his vehicles for his 1931 Yellow Journey, a expedition across Central Asia. The East Without Borders is somewhat of a curatorial contrary to this epic expedition, in which Louis Vuitton and the exhibition organizer Hervé Mikaeloff have asked selected artists from the countries then traversed to provide a perspective of their home countries now, and not necessarily a romantic perspective.

Scenographer India Mahdavi has emphasized chaos in the organization of the works as a way of mirroring some of the obstacles these places currently face. The pieces on display are diverse, from contemporary creations such as sound installations to maps and testimonials lent by National Geographic Society and a Louis Vuitton-equipped half truck, property of the Citröen Museum. The exhibition explores a less ethnocentric view of the world, taking exploration and frontier crossing in reverse and into a more experiemental and conceptural realm.

March 14 to May 17, 2008
60 rue de Bassano/
101 avenue des Champs-Elysees
75008 Paris T. +33 (0)1 53 57 52 03