The Pliage is one of Longchamp’s most iconic bags and is much appreciated by chic travellers as it can be folded without losing shape. It’s therefore quite ironic that the foldable bag has now been given the “bronze” treatment by Chinese sculptor Sui Jianguo.

“Rainbow” is an installation of five multi-coloured pieces especially created for Longchamp Hong Kong by the respected sculptor, and is now exhibited in its store there.

The bronze sculptures faithfully adopt the shape of the bag even down to the details of the closure, the handles, and the zip. However, the shape is also deliberately “mishandled” giving a raw appearance that leaves the sculpted material and the modelling work visible. Each bronze has been lacquered in different vivid colours.

“I chose the colours magenta, lemon yellow, blue, orange, and apple green to compose this “Rainbow” series of five bags because I wanted to bring a fresh, exotic, and vibrant touch to this Western icon,” the artist explained.

The sculptor, who is well-known for his giant caged red dinosaur series, had previously given a similar multi-colour treatment to the Mao jacket.

Image and info from Blouinartinfo.com