Schön! alive 3 | switching gear

Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten Kempinski.

Munich is not exactly short on things to do. The problem, if you have ever arrived with 48 hours and an overconfident itinerary, is deciding which version of the city you are actually supposed to see. The beer halls? The palaces? The Eisbach? The BMW museum? Kempinski thinks that choosing is overrated.

Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten Kempinski has introduced a hospitality framework called ‘E.R.A.s,’ short for ‘Experience Real Access,’ directly transforming its grand property on Maximilianstraße into a gateway for Bavarian culture. The initiative looks back to 1872 when Berthold and Helene Kempinski launched a tiny Berlin wine bar to pioneer the art of the aperitif, later hiring Leo Kronau in 1926 as the industry’s first experience designer for the massive Haus Vaterland entertainment complex.

Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten Kempinski.

A century later, the concept comes with a Resident Curator, Bastian Zimmermann, a Munich-based dramaturge, curator and editor whose role is to make the concierge desk considerably more interesting. Instead of simply pointing you towards a palace, restaurant or museum, the idea is to introduce you to the people behind them – or, in Kempinski’s language, offer the kind of access that cannot simply be found by refreshing a booking page. “For decades, luxury has meant the same room service in different postcodes,” says Barbara Muckermann, Kempinski Group CEO. “We are expanding the role of the Hotel by turning it inside out: the Hotel is no longer a refuge from the city, but the gateway into it.”

Guests can choose from three immersive narratives designed to reveal the hidden history of the city. The Royalty Era is, unsurprisingly, not for anyone hoping to have a calm afternoon. Guests can take to the skies over Bavaria’s royal landscape alongside historians Markus and Vanessa Richter, whose relationship with the Wittelsbach dynasty goes considerably deeper than a well-organised Wikipedia rabbit hole. Included in the schedule are aerial views of royal estates and private encounters with the stories behind Ludwig II and Neuschwanstein, alongside experiences at Nymphenburg that bring history, dining and performance together.

Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten Kempinski, the Craftsmanship schedule and World Cup champion and Ballon d’Or winner Lothar Matthäus.

Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten Kempinski, Beer selection.

Alternatively, the Craftsmanship schedule connects visitors with the artisans of the Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg, working under chief executive Anders Thomas to decorate customised porcelain pieces. Elite beer sommelier Dr Sauer hosts a separate tasting inside the hotel’s historic Jagdzimmer, presenting all six of Munich’s major regional beers side by side, while BMW Classic leader Helmut Käs leads personal walkthroughs of the automotive workshops where the manufacturer originated in 1916.

Then there is the Regenerative Era, for those who prefer their luxury experience with an elevated heart rate. Certified guide Mario Ströhlein coordinates breathing preparations inside the hotel before leading a cold plunge into the fast-flowing currents of the Eisbach canal. Football fans can join World Cup champion and Ballon d’Or winner Lothar Matthäus for his early morning running routine through the paths of the English Garden.

Aurelia van Lyden, Kempinski Group’s Vice President of Experiences, describes the Resident Curator as someone whose career and local relationships allow them to connect guests with the people who shape a destination. The focus, she says, is on “personal connections that open doors to the city itself.”

Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten Kempinski.

The programme marks a clever evolution of what the Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten has always represented. The property has stood on Maximilianstraße since 1858, in the heart of Munich and within walking distance of many of its best-known cultural landmarks.

The Munich E.R.A.s are available to hotel guests now, with the concept set to expand across the wider Kempinski portfolio, including the Augustine Hotel in Prague. Discover more here.

photography. courtesy of Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten Kempinski
words. Gennaro Costanzo

The Porsche 911 Reimagined by Singer – Classic and Louis Vuitton x Singer.

Whenever we think about travelling by car, the journey tends to begin with a small logistical crisis. There is the luggage to fit, the bags to choose, the questionable suitcase that has survived more holidays than it probably should and, eventually, the inevitable game of Tetris required to get everything into the boot. Louis Vuitton has spent more than a century making that part of travel considerably more elegant. This summer, however, the Maison appears to have looked beyond the luggage altogether.

After celebrating 130 years of its Monogram through a series of anniversary collections revisiting some of its most recognisable travel pieces, Louis Vuitton has taken its relationship with the road somewhere more unexpected. Partnering with Californian automotive atelier Singer, the French Maison has helped reimagine not the trunk you pack, but the car that carries it.

Two extraordinary Porsche 911s have been reimagined through the Maison’s particular interpretation of the ‘Art of Travel.’ The first is a vividly coloured coupé built around speed, engineering and the open road, while the other is a white, turbocharged cabriolet conceived with Louis Vuitton’s Artistic Director of Women’s Collections, Nicolas Ghesquière, who has essentially given a classic 911 the lifestyle aspirations of a very expensive Riva boat.

Porsche 911 Reimagined by Singer – Classic, Louis Vuitton x Singer.

Porsche 911 Reimagined by Singer – Classic, Louis Vuitton x Singer.

But cars were not exactly how this whole project began – it was actually the idea of a new timepiece. “This unique and remarkable adventure began with a request for a dashboard clock for a car reimagined by Singer,” explains Jean Arnault, Louis Vuitton’s Watch Director. The collaboration quickly expanded into a complete rethinking of the vehicles, bringing together Louis Vuitton’s watchmaking, leatherwork, trunk-making, fashion and footwear teams with Singer’s obsessive approach to restoring and reimagining classic Porsche architecture. The resulting partnership is a first for both sides, with Louis Vuitton creating its first co-branded automotive project and Singer developing a car around the vision of another luxury house.

First up is the Porsche 911 Reimagined by Singer – Classic, based on a Type 964 chassis and dressed in an unmistakable combination of saffron, cobalt blue and yellow. Beneath its lightweight carbon-fibre body sits a naturally aspirated, air-cooled 4.0-litre flat-six, paired with a six-speed manual transmission, rear-wheel drive and carbon-ceramic brakes. In other words, there is plenty going on beneath the very fashionable paint job.

Porsche 911 Reimagined by Singer, Louis Vuitton x Singer.

The exterior also comes with a speed-activated rear wing and a bespoke luggage rack capable of carrying skis or a surfboard, which efficiently establishes the intended lifestyle. Inside, however, things become even more Vuitton than they already are. Vachetta leather, Monogram details, Malletage quilting, cobalt-blue surfaces and yellow stitching transform the cockpit into something between a grand touring car and an extremely exclusive piece of luggage.

Even the switches, knobs and gauges received the full treatment. Louis Vuitton’s designers reworked the instrument display using visual references from the Maison’s Tambour watch, translating its hands, indexes and finishes onto an automotive scale. A year of development reportedly went into getting those details right, and it was definitely worth the process. “It was important to remain faithful to the idea of a functional and useful vehicle. Beyond aesthetics, the car had to continue to express the emotional notion of travel, so deeply rooted in the DNA of Louis Vuitton, while preserving the purity, handling and technical integrity that define Singer,” says Octave Chany, Project Lead Designer at Singer.

Tambour dashboard clock, Louis Vuitton x Singer.

Tambour dashboard clock, Louis Vuitton x Singer.

At the centre sits the piece that started everything: a detachable mechanical dashboard clock inspired by the Tambour – perhaps one of Vuitton’s most recognisable watch collections. Made by La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton in Switzerland, the clock can be removed from the car and placed on its own desk stand, allowing the journey to continue even after the engine has been switched off. It features manual winding, hours, minutes and small seconds, as well as an eight-day power reserve. There are, objectively speaking, easier ways to tell the time, but why not show off?

Once the coupé was complete, the project expanded again. Ghesquière stepped in to imagine a Porsche 911 Reimagined by Singer – Classic Turbo, this time taking the form of a cabriolet with Calcaire Lutétien white bodywork, brown accents and an interior built around leather and precious wood. “Automotive design is a passion that has always lived within me,” Ghesquière says. “My collaboration with Singer has been a chance to reconnect with this fascinating world – a magnificent opportunity to explore truly exceptional automobiles.”

His version of the 911 takes inspiration from classic motorboats, combining a 3.8-litre twin-turbocharged flat-six with a six-speed manual gearbox and a whale-tail rear wing. The rear-opening luggage compartment reveals a teak-inspired wooden deck, while similar wooden details appear throughout the body and interior. 

The Porsche 911 Reimagined by Singer – Classic Turbo, Louis Vuitton x Singer.

The Porsche 911 Reimagined by Singer – Classic Turbo, Louis Vuitton x Singer.

Naturally, two cars like these could not simply be left to fend for themselves without an accompanying wardrobe. For the Classic coupé, Louis Vuitton has created an exclusive capsule designed to mirror the car’s own materials and colour palette. A naturally grained leather racing jacket references details found on the seats and sun visor, while washed cotton-and-silk denim, perforated driving gloves (to die for, actually) and a carbon-and-glass-fibre jet helmet complete the look.

Footwear comes in two forms: the LV Rally, a dedicated driving shoe with LV initials and a rubber-pad sole, and the LV Remix Derby, a more everyday silhouette with heritage-inspired detailing. There are also key holders, document pochettes, watch cases and made-to-measure luggage, including the Horizon 55 cabin suitcase, the Keepall Bandoulière 50 and the Soft Trunk bags specifically shaped to fit inside the car’s front trunk.

For the Turbo cabriolet, Ghesquière extends the car’s white, wood and gold palette into a wardrobe that looks as though it has been pulled directly from the passenger compartment. The capsule includes a made-to-measure parachute-silk suit with raised V-shaped seams, braided leather driving gloves and the low-slung LV Sneakerina, finished in brown leather and off-white textile with its signature tucked discreetly into the side. 

The accessories follow suit, with gold and acetate sunglasses hiding a tiny Monogram Flower beneath one lens, alongside a cream carbon-and-glass-fibre helmet with a tan visor. Even the luggage adopts the same nautical-meets-automotive language, with pieces including the Alma Soft, Express MM, Noé and Petite Malle echoing the cabriolet’s wood, leather and gold detailing.  

Louis Vuitton x Singer.

Singer founder and Executive Chairman Rob Dickinson says the process allowed both sides to bring decades of specialist knowledge to the table. “The specifications chosen by Louis Vuitton exposed us to techniques and methods developed over decades of experience,” he explains. “They trusted us with their esteemed brand, their traditions and their vision and it was a joy to bring our two worlds together.”

The two cars were recently unveiled during Monterey Car Week, joining a long history between Louis Vuitton and the automobile that stretches from bespoke motoring trunks to the Louis Vuitton Classic Run rallies and the Maison’s old Design Award for concept cars. Still, this particular collaboration may be its most comprehensive automotive experiment yet.

After all, if you are going to take the scenic route, you might as well make sure the luggage fits perfectly.

Discover more about the new collaboration here.

photography. courtesy of Louis Vuitton
words. Gennaro Costanzo

Mert & Marcus for ALO.

Following Bella Hadid’s turn in front of the camera, ALO is now handing the spotlight to Kylie Jenner – although, in this case, that’s what she is trying to escape from. Jenner has practically grown up in front of a lens, constantly watched, photographed and admired, so making a campaign centred on the moments when nobody is looking makes for a fairly unexpected next move. The entrepreneur, beauty mogul and permanently online cultural phenomenon becomes the latest face of ALO in a new campaign exploring the more intimate rituals that exist behind the scenes.

This is also a different type of energy from Jenner’s recent summer of highly visible brand moments. Between reviving the legendary King Kylie for a very pink Dunkin’ collaboration and appearing in the glossy world of her eponymous label KHY, privacy has not exactly been the dominant aesthetic. ALO, however, is interested in the opposite proposition: what happens when the cameras are theoretically off.

“Some of the most meaningful parts of my life happen when no one’s watching,” Jenner says. “Those moments of stillness are what help me feel grounded and present, and I’ve learned to protect them. That’s what I love about this campaign – it reminds us that taking care of yourself starts with making space for the things that are yours alone.”

Mert & Marcus for ALO.

Mert & Marcus for ALO.

Shot once again in Los Angeles by Mert & Marcus, the campaign presents Jenner in a more stripped-back setting. It’s not exactly an undercover operation either — this is still Kylie Jenner, after all — but the mood is intentionally more about finding a little breathing room away from the public eye.

The campaign also introduces ALO’s latest colour drop, Pink Marshmallow, because even the wellness wardrobe has decided it would like dessert. Jenner wears the new Alosoft Intuition Bra and High-Waist Intuition Capri in the soft pink heathered shade, alongside a rotation of the brand’s signature pieces including the Sunset Sneaker, Prismatic Jacket and High-Waist Prismatic Short, Splendor Bra, Aspire Tank, Alosoft Better Together Bra and High-Waist 7/8 Better Together Legging. Elsewhere, the Airlift Intrigue Bra and High-Waist Airlift Short bring ALO’s more performance-focused fabric into the mix, while the Sway Full Zip Hoodie offers the obvious solution for anyone whose personal wellness journey occasionally involves cancelling plans and laying down.

“Kylie has been part of the ALO community for years and we’ve always admired her distinctive sense of confidence and individuality,” says Summer Nacewicz, ALO’s EVP of Marketing & Creative. “What makes this campaign so meaningful is that it reveals a side of Kylie beyond the public image. Together, we wanted to celebrate the everyday moments where wellness begins — the ones that allow us to reconnect with ourselves.”

Mert & Marcus for ALO.

Mert & Marcus for ALO.

The wellness giant is no stranger to featuring the Kardashian-Jenner family members in its campaigns. Just last year, her older sister Kendall Jenner fronted the brand’s ‘Luxury Is Wellness’ campaign, while more recently ALO has continued building an increasingly high-fashion visual world around its studio-to-street identity.

Of course, even Kylie Jenner cannot disappear completely – she can, however, wear a very good matching set, find five quiet minutes and remind the rest of us that not every moment needs to become content.

The Kylie Jenner x ALO campaign launches today, alongside the Pink Marshmallow drop, with the featured styles available through ALO online and in stores. Find out more here.

photography. courtesy of Mert & Marcus for ALO
words. Gennaro Costanzo