• Fashion
  • Beauty
  • Watches & Jewellery
  • Culture
  • Female TV
  • #WHATTHEFEMALE
  • Fashion
  • Beauty
  • Watches & Jewellery
  • Culture
  • FemaleTV
  • #Whatthefemale
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
Subscribe Now!
  • Also available at:
Privacy Menu 1
  • About Us
  • Advertise with Us
  • Contact
  • Conditions of Access
  • PDPA
  • Privacy Policy
SPH Magazine

SPH Magazines © 2021 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd A Division of Singapore Press Holdings Ltd

  • Fashion
  • Beauty
  • Watches & Jewellery
  • Culture
  • Female TV
  • #WHATTHEFEMALE

Beauty

Exclusive: Artist Alex Israel On His (California) Dream Collab With Louis Vuitton

Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Search in posts
Search in pages
Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Search in posts
Search in pages
Beauty

Exclusive: Artist Alex Israel On His (California) Dream Collab With Louis Vuitton

The buzzy pop culture-influenced, candy colour-loving multimedia artist Alex Israel has made his hometown of Los Angeles both his muse and subject. Last year, he got to apply his dreamy vision to fragrance packaging when Louis Vuitton introduced cologne perfumes, a triptych of evocative scents inspired by America’s golden state. As the brand continues the tie-up with a fourth scent, California Dream, revealed this month, we get the exclusive from Israel on his perennial love affair with LA – and evolving one with perfumes and collaborations.

by Keng Yang Shuen  /   June 12, 2020

This article first appeared in the June 2020 Collaboration Issue of FEMALE.

Related Articles

Want To Smell Intellectual? These Scents Can Help

Father's Day Gift Idea: Unisex Fragrances Dad Won't Mind Using

These Travel-Inspired Louis Vuitton Candles Are What Every Stylish Home Needs

https://www.femalemag.com.sg/gallery/beauty/louis-vuitton-alex-israel-los-angeles-california-dream-collaboration-scent-california-dream/
Exclusive: Artist Alex Israel On His (California) Dream Collab With Louis Vuitton
image

On the importance of scents

 

“Scent for me has always been tied to memory and memory is hugely important to how I work from a first-person point of view to narrate the story of my life and times. Scent is also a means towards activating one’s imagination.”

 

On why he was drawn to this collaboration

 

“When I was approached by Louis Vuitton to do this, I saw the opportunity as both a challenge and a means to learn something new. I had never worked with fragrances and I’ve grown to appreciate them so much through this project. I was surprised to learn about what goes into making each scent unique. (California Dream, for example, blends fresh, sprightly notes like mandarin with mellower ones like ambrette and benzoin.) Working with Louis Vuitton, of course, also introduced me and my work to a whole new audience.”

image

On teaming up with a luxury giant

 

“Louis Vuitton was focused on Southern California as the inspiration for this suite of perfumes. Familiar with my work, Delphine Arnault (the brand’s executive vice- president) found my practice to be aligned with the moods and feelings that the company was hoping to translate through these scents: a highlighting of certain facets of the beauty and humour of LA culture… It was a very natural and easy collaboration because it all sort of made perfect sense once I met the Louis Vuitton team and smelled the fragrances. (Louis Vuitton master perfumer) Jacques Cavallier Belletrud truly put Los Angeles and the California spirit into them.”

image

On translating a scent into something visual

 

“The materials for California Dream began with the LA sky at sunset, which was the inspiration for the scent itself. Created by Jacques, it was sent to my studio in its early stages and inspired everything else: the fragrance’s name, the decision to apply a colour gradient to the bottle, the packaging involving my Sky Backdrop imagery (one of Israel’s most famous series depicting the sky through airbrushed gradient colours), the design of in-store displays, the product photography, online content, promotional materials and events. I was involved in all of it. Immediately after smelling the perfume, I worked closely with the team at Louis Vuitton on a regular basis over the course of a year to bring the product to life… I think of it as a translation of my work into the medium of branded fragrance.”

image

On how Sky Backdrop, his work that’s been adapted for the packaging of California Dream, came to be

 

“I sourced the colours and cloud patterns for these paintings directly from the sky above my hometown of Los Angeles. Its colours are specific to LA and remind me of home… In a city as sprawling and horizontal as LA – sandwiched between desert and sea – the sky exists as a kind of infinitely expansive canvas. For me, it represents open-ended possibility, optimism and positivity.”

image

On the similarities between perfume and art

 

“Jacques likes to say that when you put fragrance on skin, it changes over time. This is really like making art. When I make an artwork, I hope that it sticks in someone’s memory and how this person thinks about it evolves. I believe that both fragrance and art can impact one over time and I like the parallel between these two worlds.”

image

On how fragrances can inspire creativity

 

“Every scent can evoke experiences of one’s past, specific places and moments. This uncanny deja vu can certainly open up one’s thinking and refocus one’s creative energy.”

image

On his personal connection to sunset, the inspiration for the scent

 

“Sunset Boulevard is my favourite street in LA; I live right above the Sunset Strip. Sunset is also my favourite time of day. It’s when I feel most connected to nature and when, no matter what I’m doing, I always stop and take a deep breath and feel grateful. That deep breath, that expansive field of colour above, and that freedom and excitement that’s associated with life on the West Coast – that’s what this perfume is meant to capture.”

image

On why a scent that evokes Los Angeles is relevant

 

“LA represents the American dream, freedom, and the possibility of fantasy and reality coexisting side by side in the exact same time and space. Perfume is fantasy and your body is reality, and as these realms are brought together through this fragrance, Los Angeles is conjured not only in scent but also in spirit. In a way, the fragrance is almost an allegory for fragrance itself and I think that makes it truly unique.”

image

On why Los Angeles has such a profound influence on his work

 

“It’s my home, the thing I know best and a place of immense creative output, which emanates outwards to inform and entertain the rest of the world.”

 

On being an artist based in Los Angeles

 

“It’s inspiring!”

  • TAGS:
  • alex israel
  • art
  • artist
  • california dream
  • collaboration
  • cologne
  • los angeles
  • louis vuitton
  • louis vuitton fragrance
SHARE THIS ON

Trending

Beauty

See What Happens When We Asked Cool Girl Dawn Koh To Try Out Chanel's New Sublimage L'Extrait De Nuit Serum

Beauty

These Experts Predict How Our Skincare Routines Will Be Like In 2021

Beauty

11 Best Korean Moisturisers To Achieve Supple Mochi Skin

Beauty

All The Beauty Launches To Know In January

Beauty

7 Travel-Proof Skincare Essentials To Pack For Your Staycay

Beauty

Beauty Pros On The Mistakes You Shouldn't Be Making In 2021

Beauty

Why You Should Jump Into Bed With The Silk Pillowcases And Eye Masks From This SG Brand

Beauty

Get First Dibs On The Launch Of The Rouge Dior Satin Balm & Other Dior Beauty Launches For 2021

Beauty

How To Get Creative With Fragrances If You Can't Stand Strong Scents

Beauty

PSA: Rihanna's Fenty Skin Arrives In Singapore This Boxing Day

Beauty

Superfood Skincare Might Be Your Answer To A Great Complexion

Beauty

Facial Treatments To Try To Put Your Best Face Forward For 2021

Featured Video
Watch Video: Elevate Your Style With Statement Pieces From This Accessories Wonderland
Sponsored Highlights
  • Beauty Unlock The Secret To Your Skin’s Radiance With This New Premium Skincare Line
  • Beauty See What Happens When We Asked Cool Girl Dawn Koh To Try Out Chanel's New Sublimage L'Extrait De Nuit Serum
  • Fashion Object Of Desire: Prada's Cleo Bag
  • Watches & Jewellery Brilliant Jewellery Ideas From Charms To Necklaces That Everyone Will Approve Of
  • Fashion 29 Fun And Fashionable Christmas Gift Ideas
  • Fashion The Holiday Dressing Edit: 12 Items To Put You In A Vacation Mood
Editor’s Picks
  • Fashion 10 Concept Stores That Bring The World To You
  • Fashion Object Of Desire: Prada's Cleo Bag
Female Newsletter
Sign up for one of our free newsletters to receive the latest news, commentary and fashion features straight from FEMALE.
Will be used in accordance with our Privacy Statement
Footer Menu
  • About Us
  • Advertise With Us
  • Contact Us
  • Conditions of Access
  • PDPA
  • Privacy Policy
SPH Magazine

SPH Magazines © 2021 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd A Division of Singapore Press Holdings Ltd