January 2011 window – sculptures by Federico Uribe

In New York, the new year windows are typically low key because companies have expended just about every ounce of their hearts and souls on their holiday window displays.  But for 2011, Louis Vuitton has installed a show stopper – or may I say, a street stopper.  For the first time in a while, I believe there are more people stopping on the northeast side corner of 57th and 5th avenue than maybe the northwest or southwest corners – Bergdorf Goodman and Tiffany & Co occupy the latter two.

Chimp made of Puma shoes

I originally thought that Louis Vuitton collaborated with the innovative artist Federico Uribe.  ”Uribe is a conceptual artist resorting to the language of pop art through the use of objects of daily life, but with a formal reference to the history and tradition of classical art.” – federicouribe.com In 2006, he collaborated with Puma to create an installation that used Puma shoes to sculpt a series entitled Human Nature.  These pieces were beautiful and just awesome, you can see the entire series on Uribe’s site.

Owl created by Billie Achilleos

However, I stand corrected by the real artist who stumbled upon my site.  Please see Billie Achilleos‘s comments below.  She was commissioned by Chameleon Visual to create these bespoke creatures. Billie is a multitalented artist who has a knack for making beautiful props and puppets.  Her work caters to a vast variety of mediums and industries including film, theatre and of course window displays.

Artist with her bunnies

For the Louis Vuitton installation, the creatures were sculpted out of LV handbags.  After staring at these in awe for a few minutes my biggest question was, “What will happen to these little guys after the window comes down?”  Hopefully they’ll be collectors items and either stay within the company.  Well screw the handbag, I want the Rooster! Which one is your favorite?

Kitty