BELIEVE IN TIME
LOUIS XIII COGNAC PAYS TRIBUTE TO MOTHER EARTH IN THIS COLLABORATION WITH CHINESE COUTURE DESIGNER GUO PEI, WRITES EVONNE BIANCA DUIS
“It ’s a real honour to announce this new project, which is a tribute to Louis XIII’s long-standing relationship with Time,” says Leonardo Ferracina, Global Executive Director of Louis XIII Cognac.
“We are ver y proud to be working with three incredibly talented women. Believe i n Time illustrates how great ar tistr y has the power to cross cultural boundaries to create a piece of ar t never seen before. We hope to inspire people with a positive and creative message.”
With the release of the new Louis XIII cognac ar t film, an expression of tribute to Mother Ear th is beautifully depic ted through the stor y, music and choreography of Solange Knowles, film direc tion of Mati Diop and t he craf tmanship of Guo Pei. Together they brought to life a message etched in this ar t film: Believe in Time.
“When I first experienced Louis XIII, I was absolutely fascinated by the brand’s histor y which had been made possible by a legacy passed down from one generation t o t he nex t... this deeply touched me. It triggered my understanding and perception of time. For humans, time is the most impor tant, and as an Haute Couture designer time i s a cornerstone. My design focuses on the description of my life and my passions, which developed over time, by tr ying to make people feel moved and touched by this relationship to time which Louis XIII beautifully embodies. It is as if we can take par t in this eternit y thanks to Louis XIII!” Guo Pei enthuses. To understand the ar tistic elements from Guo Pei, it is vital that the Chinese couture designer walks through the blueprint of her couture ar t piece that essentially i nter t wines Louis XIII Cognac with Mother Ear th.
“Couture means eternal design,” says Guo Pei, who was i nspired by Mother Ear th’s complexion, frame and aspirational energy. Sourcing materials that represent natural elements, this ar t piece i s brought to life. She believes that a person’s life is the most precious treasure. “And life is time.”
Guo Pei creates t he bodice with tourmaline gemstones. “The stones, gems or rocks are actually her bones,” explains Guo Pei. She views them as the most powerful and most energetic par t of Mother Ear th. With deep blues, greens and golds, the gemstones are luxouriously shaped into rat tan pat terns. True to Guo Pei’s description of the rat tan pat terns, it is delicately wrapped to create t he final shape of the bodice. “The rat tan pat terns are
like growing vines wreathing into the body of Mother Earth.”
To emulate sunrays, Guo Pei selects fabric that emits the same shine. With intricate gold and silver threads woven in the fabric, the skir t creates a glimmer that mimics the complex yet familiar rays of the sun, adding warmth to the design.
“What I imagined was that Mother Ear th should be holding a globe in her hands,” explains Guo Pei while cupping her hands together. The designer also mentions that the creation of the globe was an experiment that took the most at tempts but through those experiments, it became her favourite piece.
Reminiscing her first encounter with Louis XIII Cognac i n Paris, the designer describes her amazement as she watched the rich colours as it was being poured into the cr ystal glass: “absolute beaut y”. Selecting a colour to represent the aura, Guo Pei thought it fit ting to have a meaning that carries light, energy, life and time. With that, the aura releases a beautiful luxourious gold.
As a result from these ar tistic elements brought together, the campaign por trays a sensitive and emotional par t of the cognac. The Louis XIII Cognac is on its own a representation of eternal legac y that assures qualit y, ar tistr y and beaut y. It believes in a time that produces qualit y.