Did Louis Vuitton Sponsor ‘Human Zoos’ in the 1800s and Early 1900s?
French designer Louis Vuitton (1821-1892), whose initials are enshrined in the name of the multi-billion-dollar fashion conglomerate LVMH, began his career as an apprentice malletier (trunk maker) in Paris in the 1830s.
Over time, he parlayed his artisanship into a successful business catering to upper-class Parisians, opening his first independent shop in 1854. By the time of his death in 1892, the Louis Vuitton brand was synonymous with luxury, a reputation built upon by his son and subsequent generations of the Vuitton family.
According to an assortment of memes making the social media rounds since early 2019, that brand was tainted by its alleged participation an 19th- and early 20th-century phenomenon known as “human zoos.” These were zoo-like exhibitions of so-called “primitive” peoples displayed in world’s fairs and traveling shows in Europe and the United States during the era of global colonialism. Though they were more often known at the time by the quasi-scientific name “ethnological exhibitions,” these displays came to be seen as emblematic of the racism and inhumanity underlying the colonialist mindset.
The memes allege that Louis Vuitton “sponsored” such exhibitions in major cities throughout the world:
While you’re now complaining about gucci and last year it was Prada and Moncler, did you know that in the late 1800s and in the early 1900s Louis Vuitton sponsored human zoos were black People were looked at as exotic circus like creatures.
Here is a picture of a Louis Vuitton pic.twitter.com/a28f6iUx1v — Thywill Brown (@Brownthywill) February 12, 2019
The posts failed to make clear whether the allegation is meant to apply to Louis Vuitton, the man, or Louis Vuitton, the company, or both. They also failed to provide any real evidentiary support for the allegation.
Some of the posts, such as the Facebook message above (since deleted), included a link to the blog “Brand Memory,” which contains an article mentioning that Louis Vuitton showcased products at several world’s fairs and at the 1931 Paris Colonial Exposition, at which, the article says, “human zoos” were exhibited.
But the article doesn’t claim that the company (Louis Vuitton was long deceased by 1931) actually played any part in such zoos. The mentions appear in these paragraphs describing a 2010 Carnavalet Museum retrospective on the evolution of the Vuitton style (emphasis added):
The next room deals with transport – with the miniature of a stagecoach and all the types of traveling trunks such as Tea Cases, the car trunk – and with World Fairs, which led to so many creations! Louis Vuitton attended them from 1867 and won many prizes there. During the great 1900 Fair, Georges Vuitton is in charge of the organization of the traveling objects and leather goods section. Therefore, he is outside the competition. Nevertheless, he displays – as we learn it – his own exhibition in a blue carousel reminding you of the Big Wheel. Posters, maps and trunks are there to testify the influence of the World Fairs. But you can also see a magnificent mockup of the 1878 Palais du Trocadéro. Then, we discover the design and Africanism of the beginning of the 20th century. If the Arts Décoratifs are more visible on the Louis Vuitton collection pieces (such as perfume flasks), the ethnical inspirations are directly perceptible on the trunks: crocodile leather, objects made of ivory… This style was to reach its peak for the colonial exhibition in 1931, whose map lets us perceive the festive aspect of it as well as the “human zoos.”
Though the sentence above is poorly translated and vague, it’s clear enough that the clause referring to “human zoos” applies to the 1931 Colonial Exposition as a whole, not the Louis Vuitton pavilion, which existed but had no evident connection to displays of live human beings. According to a museum press release, in keeping with the colonial theme, the Vuitton pavilion showcased Africa-themed products (mainly trunks) and artifacts such as masks and totems. (The photograph that appears in the social media posts shows that pavilion. It was not, contrary to what the Facebook meme claims, a “Louis Vuitton store exhibition” in St. Louis.)
In point of fact, according to historical accounts, the only display in the Colonial Exposition of 1931 rightly described as a “human zoo” (namely, a group of indigenous New Caledonians — “Kanaks” — sensationally billed as “polygamous savages and cannibals”) was relegated to an offsite location miles away from the main exposition grounds. People (mainly artisans) from other indigenous groups intermingled with visitors and represented their cultures in the exposition proper (in the Bois de Vincennes), but the Kanaks found themselves confined to the Jardin d’Acclimatation (in the Bois de Boulogne), which at that time also housed an actual zoo with crocodiles and other exotic animals.
Infamously, the Jardin d’Acclimatation had housed a succession of mocked-up “native villages” since 1877, populated at various times by colonized indigenous peoples. The Kanak exhibition would be the last of its kind there before the venue was turned into an amusement park. In what some might perceive as an ironic development, the headquarters of the Fondation Louis Vuitton, a non-profit entity founded by LVMH to promote international arts and culture, was erected in 2014 in close proximity to where those “human zoo” exhibitions of previous centuries once stood.
But we found nothing in any of the historical sources we examined to connect Louis Vuitton to any such displays — not at the 1931 Paris Colonial Exposition, not at world’s fairs where the company was known to have displayed its wares, and not in traveling shows in the United States or other parts of the world. While it could be argued that the company engaged in cultural appropriation over the course of its long history, and perhaps even profited from the trappings of colonialism, the charge that Louis Vuitton sponsored or facilitated “human zoos” stands unproven.
We reached out to the Louis Vuitton company and the Fondation Louis Vuitton for comment on this subject, but did not receive replies.
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Bloomberg
(Bloomberg) – Renault SA braced investors for another challenging year as lingering coronavirus restrictions and supply-chain challenges threaten the French carmaker coming off a record annual deficit.The manufacturer reported a net loss of 8 billion euros ($9.7 billion) for 2020, worse than the 7.85 billion euro-deficit projected by analysts. Much of the damage was done during the first half, when lockdowns crippled auto shipments.“2021 is set to be difficult given the unknowns regarding the health crisis as well as electronic components supply shortages,” Chief Executive Officer Luca de Meo said Friday in a statement. “The priority is profitability and cash generation.”Renault said business improved significantly during the final six months of last year, when it generated an operating margin of 3.5% and positive automotive operational free cash flow.De Meo took over in July after his predecessor was ousted as part of the fallout from the 2018 arrest of former leader Carlos Ghosn. The CEO is now pushing through plans to shore up profits, repair the troubled partnership with Nissan Motor Co. and cut costs by closing sites and eliminating 14,600 jobs.Renault fell as much as 8.5% in Paris trading, paring this year’s gain to around 7%.The results for last year were weighed down by Nissan, which accounted for almost 5 billion euros of the loss, mostly accumulated during the first half. The car-making alliance that also includes Mitsubishi Motors Corp. has been shaken to the core, with the three trying to find ways to work together and in some respects turning inward to stem losses.Cost CuttingNissan has embarked on an aggressive turnaround plan that involves slashing production capacity and earlier this month trimmed its loss outlook for the year through March. A surprise operating profit for the most recent quarter was a sign it’s on the path toward a tentative recovery. The company’s decision to make commercial vehicles at a Renault plant in France is an example of how the alliance is working, de Meo said on a call with analysts.The CEO faces the difficult task of rationalizing a bloated cost structure and excess production capacity while pacifying the French state – Renault’s most powerful shareholder – on local jobs. Last month, he unveiled a turnaround plan targeting an operating margin of more than 3% by 2023 and at least 5% by mid-decade. Analysts have said the push lacks ambition considering Renault’s 4.8% return in 2019, before the pandemic hit.Renault has already achieved 60% of its planned 2 billion euros of cost-cutting. While the company didn’t give a detailed outlook for 2021, it warned that a global bottleneck in auto chips could cut its car production by 100,000 vehicles this year, with the shortage reaching its peak in the second quarter.“Our visibility for the time being is pretty limited,” de Meo said.Diverging FortunesRenault’s fortunes diverged during the last few years from its French peer PSA Group, which in January completed a merger with Fiat Chrysler to form Stellantis NV. Carlos Tavares, CEO of the Peugeot and Citroen maker, pulled off the combination after the French state foiled Renault’s attempt to do a deal with Fiat in 2019.The company will continue expanding its offerings of plug-in hybrid and fully electric models and plans to start selling the mass-market Dacia Spring this quarter.Renault’s finance unit is planning to pay a 1 billion-euro dividend to the parent as soon as European rules permit, Deputy CEO Clotilde Delbos said on an analyst call. It’s aiming to make the payout later this year as central bank restrictions start to ease.The Renault board will propose during the annual shareholders’ meeting in April that the parent not pay a dividend to investors with respect to last year.Sales dropped by more than a fifth last year to 2.95 million vehicles – a far cry from Ghosn’s goal for more than 5 million cars annually by the end of next year. Renault executives have since pledged to chase profitability over sales volumes.Global auto shipments are expected to recover this year, but challenges remain. While Volkswagen AG and BMW AG posted better-than-expected preliminary earnings driven largely by China’s recovery, sales in Europe – the key market for Renault – slumped to a record low for January as lockdowns again shook the continent’s biggest markets.(Updates with board proposing no dividend in the 15th paragraph. Earlier versions of the story were corrected to remove wording from the 10th paragraph and fix the characterization of the dividend plan in the 14th paragraph.)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.