A French design duo has designed an accessory taken directly from the moon by an asteroid. The fashion item, which was presented at Paris Fashion Week in March, is now available for sale.
The object is lunar. No bad puns or hyperbole here to describe the new Copernicus bag. Named the Meteorite Swipe Bag, the accessory, which looks like a giant black rock and has a handle that looks like it was cast into the rock, was designed directly from a fossil on the moon. While the print run is certainly very limited, it is still possible to order one for €40,000 and a little patience. considering the six-week wait required for its production.
Coperni’s artistic directors Arnaud Weilan and Sébastien Meyer tell how the project was born: Then we started doing research on the phone, on the internet. We found some that came from Mars, others that landed in Morocco, it was really interesting. The duo consummate their bliss at Theatrum Mundi, Ali Baba’s massive grotto in Arezzo, Italy. In these places, fossils and meteorites are combined with other eccentric objects for collectors. The creators first fell in love with a rock from the moon that was big enough to make a bag. The one included in their first bag was found in 1968 in southern France. “He is now part of the Copernicus family»they explain, they moved.
The bag contains a meteorite that reached Earth 55,000 years ago from the Moon. Copernicus
“Nearly Indestructible”
Each piece is handmade, therefore includes a slight variation in its appearance compared to the image on the website. An empty bag weighs about 1.8 kg, a weight that is also subject to some internal variation. The bag is tough, “almost indestructible,” Arno Weilan jokes.
Contrary to what one might think, the object is not the direct result of cutting alien rock, which cannot be sculpted. They worked on this for the first time in Italy with the partners of the brand. It will form the entire bottom of the finished product. “The meteorite remains apparent. You can touch it, feel it. It’s almost a spiritual experience,” explains Arno Weilan. Then, the shape of the Swipe Bag, Coperni’s flagship bag shape updated every season, is built on and around this array with a 3D printing process that approximates the sensor side to the asteroid’s attributes. The handles are also designed this way.
Fables of the 21st century
The duo explains that they love the symbolism of the Moon (feminine and emotional), reminding us that the brand name refers to it. “Coperni is for Nicolaus Copernicus, who discovered that the sun is at the center of our system. We’ve always played around the planets and space, and the Moon embodies a femininity, a sensitivity that we really like,” explains Arnaud Weilan. The meteorite bag was first revealed on March 2, in an Instagram post published a day before the fall winter 2023-2024 ready-to-wear show at Paris Fashion Week, which led to a conversation with the robot dogs. Then the bag appeared on the catwalk in the final silhouette.
The idea of an accessory designed from meteorite appeared in the “midwifery” phase of the collection, based on the reinterpretation of the fable of Jean de la Fontaine. in the true explanation of The Wolf and the Lamb, the clothes and accessories that make it up aim to question the coexistence of humans and technology, which is both enslaving and enslaved. “In the 17th century, history tried to show how different groups of people could live together. We wanted to copy it in 2023. We chose the coexistence of people and technology, bringing a whimsical and philosophical touch.
Arnaud Vaillant and Sebastien Meyer, Coperni’s leading couple, welcome after their fall-winter 2023-2024 show. (Paris, March 3, 2023) Imaxtree:
Infinite
If Copernicus always put himself on the edge technology Change is now well underway in the fashion industry. The duo shakes up the codes of leather goods and always pushes back the technical boundaries of clothing and accessories. This is evidenced by his creations and the spectacular turn of the latest fashion shows. Like the spray-on dress shown on Bella Hadid in September 2020 that took the internet by storm. Accessories are not left out. Before being offered in rock from space, the famous Swipe Bag was designed in glass as well as gold. An infinite creativity that the creators intend to pursue. “It’s really a value that is inseparable from Sebastien’s work, it’s part of Copernicus’ DNA,” Arnaud affirms.
There’s a futuristic, dystopian feel behind this stone bag of space. A physical antithesis, an allegory of a changing world… “To live on earth is to live under the sky,” said novelist Roch Carriere. Perhaps fashion today is all about dressing up in the sky.
In the video: Coperni’s autumn-winter 2022-2023 fashion show
Source: Le Figaro
