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A rare custom Louis Vuitton printed canvas, enameled metal and wood art trunk Paris, 1924-1927
Sold for US$43,750 inc. premium
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Find your local specialistA rare custom Louis Vuitton printed canvas, enameled metal and wood art trunk
the trunk built on November 1, 1924 and numbered 755157; with three custom interior cases, built on January 9, 1927 and October 10, 1927 and numbered 775870, 775871, 775872 respectively; each case with hardware stamped L.V. and Louis Vuitton and with leather straps stamped L. Vuitton; the art trunk stenciled R.G. on the sides for its original owner, René Gimpel
height of primary trunk 37in (94cm); width 43in (109cm); depth 21in (53.5cm)
Footnotes
This trunk was designed by Louis Vuitton for his great-nephew René Gimpel, a well-known art dealer and the grandson of Louis Vuitton's brother, Regis Vuitton. Born in 1881, Gimpel was one of the most successful art dealers to arise in the interwar years and was a contemporary and companion of artists such as Mary Cassatt, Claude Monet, Marcel Proust, and Pablo Picasso. Gimpel is known to have been intimately associated with Marie Laurencin and was the brother-in-law of famous gallerist Sir Joseph Duveen. Throughout his career, Monsieur Gimpel kept detailed journals of his experiences at home and in the art world. In one entry of the diary, Gimpel relates his mother's words, "when your grandfather was young he had come to Paris with his older brother, Louis, and they both made and sold trunks" (Artists & Scholars). Gimpel's son, Jean, compiled and published his father's twenty-two notebooks into the book The Diary of an Art Dealer. This diary has provided invaluable insight into the art world in the era between World War I and World War II. Gimpel was a consultant to the Toledo Museum of Ohio for painting acquisition. The offered art trunk made by Vuitton contains three painting cases which were used by Gimpel to transport paintings between France and the United States.
Saleroom notices
Please note: The offered lot was designed and built between 1924-1927 by the Louis Vuitton firm for Rene Gimpel who was the great-nephew of Louis Vuitton (1821-1892).