To celebrate 50 years of quilted purses, Karl Lagerfeld, creative director at Chanel, commissioned a bevy of artists to design their own reactions to the 2.55 handbag-you know the one; its quilted, it has a chain, its seen on the shoulder of every boho chic Hollywood actress.
To house the exhibit of the twenty handbags, Lagerfeld approached Pritzker Prize-winning architect Zaha Hadid. Her Mobile Art, a 7,500-square-foot structure with classic soft, whooshing Hadid lines, has traveled already to Hong Kong and Tokyo, and is in NYC until it moves to London before heading to Moscow and Paris.
New York magazine points out that this is the first time Hadid has had a building erected in New York. Museums have changed a great deal, she says. “The connection between culture and public life is critical-temporary architecture that can move around can enrich the lives of many more people.”
Enjoy the exhibit. While a Chanel bag will set you back a pretty penny, visiting the exhibit is free.
