A member of the fifth generation of the Vuitton family, Patrick-Louis Vuitton started his career, according to tradition, in the joinery department of the historic Asnières workshop more than 35 years ago. He worked in every department in succession, becoming an accomplished craftsman before moving on to manage the workshop and, subsequently, to oversee Special Orders, the heart of Louis Vuitton’s excellence in savoir-faire.

For his own special order, Patrick-Louis Vuitton wished to bring together Louis Vuitton’s proud heritage with his own passion for watercolour painting. Within a compact hand-stitched hard-sided case, his Boîte Commandes Spéciales contains a removable custom made compartment for his special order equipment, including a tape measure and a camera (to record the scale of an object for which a customer wishes him to design a piece of luggage), and a second custom made compartment for his watercolours, brushes and sketch pad. Patrick-Louis Vuitton chose to have the case made in two of his favourite materials: rich brown alligator lined with red goatskin which will acquire a magnificent patina over time.

“For me, as a member of the Vuitton family, Asnières has a special resonance; I was born in Asnières and grew up in the house next door to the workshop. Asnières really represents a century and a half of exceptional savoir-faire and is the starting point for the whole wonderful journey of Louis Vuitton. It is an honour to have been asked to partake in this project personally with the many other artists that I respect and to create such exceptional pieces to help the Red Cross”. – Patrick-Louis Vuitton

Images via Louis Vuitton