
Louis Vuitton Visionary Journeys Exhibition
OMA
Project Name: Louis Vuitton Visionary Journeys Exhibition
Location: Osaka, Japan
Design Team: OMA / Shohei Shigematsu
Exhibition Area: 2,200 m²
Completion: 2025
Exhibition Period: July 15 - September 17, 2025
Feature: International architecture studio OMA / Shohei Shigematsu completed the Louis Vuitton Visionary Journeys Exhibition project at Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka, creating a dramatic cultural retreat that ingeniously transforms museum space into an extraordinary brand storytelling experience. The project is positioned within the architecturally rich landscape of the museum's five-story atrium, drawing inspiration from Louis Vuitton's 170-year legacy to create an exhibition work that both celebrates traditional craftsmanship and embodies contemporary spatial innovation.
The project's most compelling design feature lies in its sophisticated response to the museum's architectural constraints---the architects masterfully handled the spatial requirements by creating a series of telescoping narrative galleries that overlap and thrust through eleven thematic zones, generating dynamic exhibition gestures that evoke both journey and exploration forms. Rather than choosing traditional linear progression, the scenography embraces vertical potential, creating an experience that layers across multiple levels with dramatic installations concealing and revealing brand heritage, generating unique spatial encounters while maintaining seamless connection through sophisticated interior volume modulation.
The exhibition's form strategically opens toward cultural dialogue and brand legacy, optimizing exposure to natural storytelling and maximizing panoramic understanding of Louis Vuitton's creative evolution. This thoughtful curation ensures that the exhibition maintains an intimate connection to Japanese culture while adhering to strict museum standards including sophisticated preservation techniques to protect historical artifacts. The exhibition facade showcases warm Monogram washi paper and hand-woven bamboo structures, providing superior cultural integration from a functional perspective while possessing refined aesthetic significance that harmonizes with traditional Japanese craftsmanship.
Material selection demonstrates exceptional sensitivity to place and cultural context. The razor-thin display details, seamlessly integrated narrative elements, and culturally sourced materials create a tactile dialogue that maps the resilient qualities of the surrounding cultural environment. The complex mirrored dome system provides necessary visual impact while allowing for maximized exhibition spatial experience, modulating interior volumes from intimate artifact spaces to dramatic skylight culmination above the workshop demonstration area.
The project culminates in the sophisticated spatial organization, which simultaneously serves multiple functions across eleven thematic galleries totaling over 2,200 square meters. The main sequence features monumental lantern installations, dramatic hemispherical trunk globe, and comprehensive brand heritage displays, while specialized zones provide Origins gallery with bamboo armature, Workshop with live craftspeople demonstrations, Materials archive with infinite display effects, and Collaborations space with kaleidoscopic mirrored presentations. This innovative design exemplifies how contemporary exhibition design can maximize cultural exchange while providing luxury brand storytelling experiences, creating a feeling that is both grounded in tradition and aspirational in vision.
Design Team - OMA stands as a distinguished international architectural practice that has established an exceptional reputation in innovative contemporary design. Founded by Rem Koolhaas in 1975 and based in Rotterdam, Netherlands, under the creative direction of partner Shohei Shigematsu for Asian projects, the firm has developed a reputation for creating innovative solutions across elegant contemporary architecture, culture-oriented creative spaces, and large-scale avant-garde projects.
Shohei Shigematsu brings exceptional architectural experience and deep understanding of contemporary spatial practices to the firm. As a partner at OMA, he specializes in Asian project development and has garnered recognition for his meticulous attention to detail and commitment to craftsmanship. This combination of global expertise with contemporary design innovation positions OMA uniquely within the international architectural landscape.
The firm's design philosophy emphasizes that concept-driven solutions are as important as spatial execution, not rushing to standardized architectural solutions but believing that architecture should be a result of thorough understanding of cultural conditions, social contexts, and programmatic requirements. Through dialogue with clients, they formulate the main ingredients for the project then offer their expertise to transform ideas into reality. OMA believes that exceptional ideas come from collaboration with specialized consultants and artisans, they love to challenge themselves and push the design boundary further, with innovation being the key to keeping their business running.
Through this thoughtful synthesis of local material usage, understanding of traditional spatial logic, and contemporary architectural language, OMA has established itself as a significant contributor to international contemporary architectural discourse, creating architectural works that are both rooted in local culture and embrace global design vision. Their work has been recognized with numerous international awards, demonstrating their ability to transform bold conceptual ideas into tangible spatial achievements that inspire and transform cultural experience.
2200 m²
Osaka, Japan
2025
