This narrative extends further in showcases like Fashion Without Limits where memorable creations from Anderson’s collections take center stage alongside United In Craft, which celebrates artisanal support worldwide.
The highlight of Crafted World is the Unexpected Dialogues section, featuring immersive rooms that transport visitors into the visionary worlds that have inspired Loewe’s collaborations. From recreations of master potter Ken Price’s studio to magical Studio Ghibli dreamscapes, these rooms ignite the imagination and celebrate creativity in its purest form.
And how does Anderson decide which artist or designer he wants to collaborate with?
“I think it’s very instinctual, there’s no rationale to it. Ultimately, it’s just things that I personally am into — it might be a film I saw, I might have been at a museum or maybe people who have fundamental values that I believe in. For me, [Hayao] Miyazaki and William Morris have something very similar in common, which is to do about the idea of make, the idea of protecting of craft, the idea of nature, the idea of like how we look at nature to design,” he explained.
“But at the same time, I’ve worked with Richard Hawkins, an American contemporary painter, where I love the idea of how he looks at pop culture, the humour of it, the idea of the irony. It just depends on my mood or what I find interesting out there. There’s no logic to it.”
When asked how he would like people to remember Jonathan Anderson’s Loewe, he said: “The biggest thing when I joined Loewe, I wanted to kind of eradicate this idea of a luxury status of a brand and this idea of a cultural brand. I wanted to put the culture at the forefront of the brand rather than it just being about a luxury product. It had to mean something more. Ten years ago when I went out with that mission statement, I didn’t know what I was saying. But now, when I see the exhibition and now when I’ve been in the brand for this period of time, it’s starting to make sense. Without the craft, without the art collaboration or the idea of the [Loewe] Craft Prize, we wouldn’t have a brand. And ultimately that has to do with the culture of it. I think this is fundamental. That’s what I would like people to remember.”
The Crafted World exhibition is now open till May 5 at the Shanghai Exhibition Centre. Free admission.
CNA Luxury was in Shanghai to experience the exhibition at the invitation of Loewe.
