LOOK: This microscopic handbag is smaller than a grain of salt
A New York-based art collective behind the viral "Astroboy" big red boots is opting for a smaller product next—and by smaller, it meant way, way smaller with a microscopic handbag.
The New York Times reported that MSCHF (pronounced "mischief") is launching a bag measuring 657 by 222 by 700 micrometers, which is smaller than a grain of sea salt and narrow enough to pass through the eye of a needle.
It's meant to be a specklike rendition of luxury house Louis Vuitton's OnTheGo tote. The fluorescent green bag is translucent and bears the LV logo.
MSCHF Chief Creative Officer Kevin Wiesner said the bag is a commentary on the impracticality of ever-shrinking luxury handbags.
"I think ‘bag’ is a funny object because it derives from something rigorously functional,” the Times quoted Wiesner as saying. “But it has basically become jewelry.”
In a statement, MSCHF said it aimed to extend that trend to its logical conclusion by stripping away all of the bag’s utility, leaving nothing but a brand signifier.
The collective, according to Wiesner, also didn't ask for permission to use Louis Vuitton’s logo or design—in light of its history of provocative antics, including creating "Birkinstock" sandals made of Birkin bags (a jab at Birkenstock and Hermès) and "Jesus Shoes," customized pairs of Nike Air Max shoes containing water from the Jordan River.
The MSCHF microscopic handbag will be sold as a lot in the Just Phriends and Joopiter auctions this June.