Milan art exhibit traces evolution of luxury

The Italian city of Milan may considered by many to be the capital of luxury. If you happen to be in the neighborhood this fall, you may want to check out a new exhibit at the Triennale Museum called C25 Options of Luxury.

Exploring the last 25 years of the luxury industry, which has been booming thanks to an expanded Asian and online market, the exhibit demonstrates how the wide availability of luxury products has served to ‘democratize’ luxury.

The exhibition tells, for the first time, the history and evolution of fashion, design and luxury with an innovative use of logos, objects and events that focus on the highly emotional relationship between brands and buyers.

Exhibits include a Hermes ‘Birkin’ bag near a ticking cuckoo clock, a giant mirror dominating the backstage of a digital fashion show, plus caviar boxes and Barbie dolls that make up a section called the “strange map of luxury goods.”

Curated by architect Italo Rota, the final destination is a green ‘Neverland’ that features solar-powered beach umbrellas and yachts moored in a blue bay.

Thanks to multimedia, visitors can interact with tablet, smartphone, or by downloading an application that allows you to see the context of each object in terms of its place in history and its importance to the evolution of the industry.

After October 2, C25 Options of Luxury will travel to New York, Shanghai and Seoul in 2012.