It will cost you USD$130 but when you know it’s a book - an object that brings forth knowledge - it’s slightly more forgivable.

Yes, in the midst of a financial crunch where we’re  being persuaded to spend on items tagged with hero terms like “investment value”, “extended mileage”, or “classic and timeless”, coffee table books can be deemed a good investment. After all, they stand the test of time longer than the average T-shirt or sandals (even the ridic-expensive ones), not forgetting that your choice of book will reveal you to be as cultured and intellectual as you want people to think. They are an accessory not just for your facebook profile character, but for your home interiors too. See the ‘investment value’ ? And honestly, very few things can match the smell of a new and mint-fresh book…

The 400-page Louis Vuitton: Art, Fashion and Architecture chronicles the brand’s “humble” beginnings as a luggage brand, to the giant superbrand it is today. The picture book focuses heavily on the collaborations and associations the brand has had with other notable names in the past years: more familiar names include Azzedine Alaïa, Mert Alas & Marcus Piggott, Manolo Blahnik, Patrick Demarchelier, Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, Marc Jacobs, Rei Kawakubo, David LaChapelle, Helmut Lang, Annie Leibovitz, Takashi Murakami, Richard Prince, Stephen Sprouse, Philippe Starck, Juergen Teller and Vivienne Westwood.

WOAH. Deep breath here. Sniff these pages and you might just get inspired. There’s so much genius in one volume.

One question. The book is available in English, French and Italian — Where are the Japanese and Chinese editions, seeing as Japan and China are two of the brand’s biggest and strongest markets?

Source: Hypebeast