When fascination with a subject reaches a point equivalent to seeing nekkid people of the sex you’re attracted to doing things you’re attracted to doing, then you can use the term “porn.” Movie series like Saw and Hostel are so entranced with physical torment that someone coined the term ‘torture porn’ for them. For us, it is gear porn.
We love high quality training gear. We love wondering about gear, talking about gear, pulling gear into pieces to see what is inside, looking at gear catalogues, buying gear, organizing gear in lines. We love putting our hands into gear, or our leg, or our head, and yes, even our groin goes inside gear. We love training with gear; We hate training without good gear.
And we have never seen anything like this gear from Louis Vuitton. It is part of the brand’s Celebrating Monogram project.
The heavybag with accessories costs $175,000.
The New York Times Style Magazine explains.
For 118 years, Louis Vuitton has been embellishing everything from steamer trunks to cigar cases with its logo. But not until they enlisted the heavyweight designer Karl Lagerfeld did the house ever create a punching bag out of its classic canvas. This limited edition of 25, which comes with boxing gloves, a monogrammed mat and its own embossed luggage (for those who want to take their workout on the road), is part of a series of six collaborations Vuitton has undertaken with artistic luminaries such as Cindy Sherman, Frank Gehry and Rei Kawakubo.
Lagerfeld explains his inspiration.
“I am always with the line from Voltaire, that ‘Everything that needs an explanation, isn’t worth the explanation.’ So what can I explain?
“By now you’ve seen what I did? It’s fun! In fact I had several ideas and Louis Vuitton wanted to do them all—why not? All of the boxing things are related.
“I know more and more women—and men too—who have started to box. I thought it was something that one should do, if possible, in a very expensive way. So I designed the huge piece of luggage with the punching-ball in it. I also wanted to make a bag that was inspired by that idea; it comes in different sizes. We made a special carpet with an application for beginners: where and how to put your feet and how to move. There is also a little bag with boxing gloves, it can be taken to the boxing appointment—I wanted to have a special Monogram for that too. It was really very childish, simple thinking!
“I imagined people would keep the trunk in their dressing rooms and use it as a closet. You remove the punching-ball, put that on its special metal stand, and use it like that. You can use the shelves, put them in the trunk and it becomes a very chic closet. There is a system that you put under it, to move it on wheels. And you can then push it into the house. It is a huge toy for spoilt, grown-up people!
“You know I sketch everything myself? If I don’t do it, I am bored! For the Vuitton project I sketched everything by hand. I know others do computer sketches, but I always have to use my hands.”
This is that it looks like.
This is what it costs.
Punching Bag PM Karl Lagerfeld (Left)
Size: 9.9″ X 13″ X 6.1″
Price: US$3400
This is the smallest piece from Karl Lagerfeld’s extravagant Boxing suite – and with its longer, curvy silhouette, it is surely the most flirtatious. The Baby Punching Bag brings a fresh, feminine allure to iconic Monogram canvas. The material is supple and body-friendly, beautifully enhanced with double chain handles in aged golden brass. A special tanning process gives the cowhide leather trim an appealingly lived-in, vintage look.
Punching Bag MM Karl Lagerfeld (Middle)
Size: 10.6″ X 15.4″ X 7.5″
Price: US$3950
Karl Lagerfeld cleverly recast the boxer’s punching bag into a chic and covetable new bag for city wear. Instantly recognisable owing to the iconic Monogram canvas and heritage House details – note the LV on the handle bases and padlock – the innovative elongated shape sets this piece apart. Supple and body-friendly, Lagerfeld’s Punching Bag features double chain handles with shoulder pads for extra comfort. The specially aged leather trim and brass hardware lend the bag a unique patina.
Punching Bag GM Karl Lagerfeld (Right)
Size: 15.4″ X 22″ X 11.9″
Price: US$4400
Karl Lagerfeld combined the codes of sport and luxury to create the Punching Bag, a key piece of the Boxing suite he designed to celebrate Monogram. While one could of course employ this large model for training practice (simply suspend it from its companion stand and start swinging!), most will prefer to use this elegant bag for travel – or for trips to the gym. Fashioned of supple, body-friendly Monogram canvas, the Punching Bag features expandable sides, a single zip closure and double chain handles in burnished brass.
Punching Suitcase Karl Lagerfeld
Size: 18″ X 15″ X 5″
Price: US$5900
In the grand tradition of special-order Vuitton luggage – purpose-built cases for objects ranging from top hats to cigars, from jewels and shirts to photography or picnic gear – Karl Lagerfeld presents his Punching Suitcase. This elegant travel accessory is fitted with a pair of boxing gloves in leather-trimmed Monogram canvas and a training mat. Playful? Yes, but practical, too: with the inner dividers removed, the bag can accommodate all manner of belongings. Fashioned of supple Monogram canvas with rich, aged leather trim including reinforced corners and a luggage tag, the Punching Suitcase slips seamlessly into the larger Boxing Trunk suite.
Punching Trunk Karl Lagerfeld
Size: 23.6″ X 65.4″ X 18.9″
Price: Price Upon Request
Karl Lagerfeld possesses an unerring knack for capturing the air du temps and distilling it into objects of desire. In celebration of Vuitton’s iconic Monogram canvas, the master imagined an extravagant set of luggage and accessories for devotees of the sweet science. His Boxing Trunk is fitted with a signature punching bag and stand, while a separate suitcase, also in Monogram, holds boxing gloves and a mat. With its capacious interior and removable shelving, the trunk can also serve as a chic travel closet. Heritage details – leather corners, tags, embossing – combine with vintage cowhide trim and aged brass hardware for an exceptional collector’s piece that is both timeless and of-the-moment. The Punching Trunk is produced in a limited edition of 25.
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Hurry up and buy early. There are only 25 available, and Conor McGregor will will probably need three.
