The Alma is one of Louis Vuitton's most iconic bags. Born as Gaston-Louis Vuitton's "Squire Bag" in 1934, it was subtly changed to become the "Champs- Elysées" , until it was given it's current name "The Alma" for a famous Parisian bridge. The bold Art Deco lines and elegant shape made it as much of a hit then as it remains now. When LV contacted me to collaborate on this project I was honoured and delighted to travel through time with the incredible Alma - after all it has been released 4 times in the last 100 years! I imagined the women that owned this timeless bag through different eras, fashions and trends and felt like a kid in a candy store when I was allowed free reign of the last 3 seasons of LV archives to style this story.
The 1930s were the age of sobering after the Great Depression and the excess of the Roaring 1920s. Even though the hems dropped and purse strings tightened, women yearned for elegance and luxury. Quality was of the outmost importance and the Alma arrived to fill a gap between beauty, spaciousness and longevity. Shhhh - some say Coco Chanel owned an Alma and it was the only bag she wore apart from her own! The epi leather Alma GM in Ivory finds itself here waiting for a cruiser ship under another icon born in that time - the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Reborn in the 50s, the era of elegance, femininity and coquettish Brigitte Bardot sexuality the Alma PM in Figue rests on the violet carpet of another 1950s birth- The Opera House in it's infancy.
The 90s brought along grunge, powerwomen , supermodels and all things bigger, better and shinier. The patent Alma GM in Pomme d'Amour comes along on a ride and spices things up on a big tough Harley.
Cut to the present, where our fashion may depend on the influences of the past but the way we wear it is different . Gone are the restrictions and rules that bound how and when women wore la mode. In this brave new world, the baby Alma is born - an instant (and completely adorable! ) classic for the 21 century. Here the Alma BB in Citron says hello to the surf and the sunshine on Sydney's famous Bondi Beach!
visit louisvuitton.com for more Alma !
STYLING /ART DIRECTION/MODEL : Tanja Gacic
PHOTOGRAPHY: Alice Wesley- Smith
FILM : Kasia Werstak
MAKE UP : Natasha Severino
HAIR: Gavin Anesbury
STYLIST ASSISTANT: Rachael Fair
MUSIC: THE PRESETS - Hill Stuck
HEAVEN XXX
Michael Whitmore Sent from my iPhone: 0412 666 788
In total awe. Sublime.
Brilliant!
[...] for Vogue Australia – impressive. Perhaps her best work to-date is her collaboration with Louis Vuitton and the legendary Alma handbag. The photographs are ad campaign worthy, and I’m not just saying that because I have a soft [...]
You are so incredible beautiful and talented, HOW in the world did I only just found you?! Where have you been hiding!? If you are every in New York, let me know and we have to go for coffee and something. Until then, I will check out your latest photos on your blog daily, because they are AMAZING Xx