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Art & Culture

Life Imitates Art: Four Dynamic Examples

From Judy Chicago and Dior to Edvard Munch and Graff, these pairings exemplify how art, design, and fashion converge in the most spectacular ways

By Stefanie Li
Green handbag with a pansy flower design next to a colorful painting of pansies on a green background.
Photo: Courtesy of Loewe. OPPOSITE: Tate
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Life Imitates Art: Four Dynamic Examples

Left: Buttery rosemary-green calfskin leather and embossed floral details inspired by genre-defying artist and writer Joe Brainard transform Loeweu2019s signature Puzzle bag, known for its precisely crafted cuboid shape. Right: Painter Alex Katz brings a lush meadow of flowers to life with vibrant hues and expressive gestures in his work Pansies (1967), rendering the simple subject in his signature flat style.

Photograph by Left: Courtesy of Loewe. Right: Tate

Left: A year before Judy Chicago began working on her seminal installation The Dinner Party, the artist made abstract canvases such as Virginia Woolf from the Reincarnation Triptych (1973), both of which celebrate womenu2019s self-expression. Right: Bringing the dark allure of fairy tales to the virtual runway, Dioru2019s creative director, Maria Grazia Chiuri, filled the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles with romantic gowns and timeless silhouettes for the houseu2019s fall 2021 ready-to-wear video presentation.

Photograph by Left: Silvia Ros. Right: Courtesy of Dior

Left: Conceived by New Orleans designer Julie Neill, Visual Comfortu2019s Talia large linear chandelier unites swirled glass orbs inna whimsical cloudlike cluster. Opposite: After building otherworldly installations with white balloons in serene natural settings, Charles Peu0301tillon captures his creations in surreal photographs such as Mutations 2 (2014, detail).

Photograph by Left: Courtesy of Circa Lighting. Right: Charles Pétillon, Courtesy of the artist and Sous Les Etoiles Gallery, New York

Left: An explosive array of 374 yellow and white diamonds creates a glittering starburst in this necklace from Graffu2019s Tribal collection. Right: The Sun, a 1914u201316 mural painted by Expressionist Edvard Munch, serves as a radiant stage backdrop in the University of Oslou2019s auditorium.

Photograph by Left: Courtesy of Graff. Right: Public Domain
Green handbag with colorful pansy print beside a painting of pansies on a vibrant green background.
Colorful abstract artwork next to a model wearing a vibrant, flowing gown with gradient colors transitioning into black at the bottom.
Left: Clear glass globe chandelier, right: white globe chandelier in forest setting.
A diamond necklace with yellow gemstones next to a colorful abstract painting with a sunburst design.
Green handbag with colorful pansy print beside a painting of pansies on a vibrant green background.
Colorful abstract artwork next to a model wearing a vibrant, flowing gown with gradient colors transitioning into black at the bottom.
Left: Clear glass globe chandelier, right: white globe chandelier in forest setting.
A diamond necklace with yellow gemstones next to a colorful abstract painting with a sunburst design.

A version of this article first appeared in print in our 2021 Fall Issue under the headline “Life Imitates Art.” Subscribe to the magazine.