Installations By Designer Jean Paul Gaultier At The Swarovski Kristallwelten (Swarovski Crystal Worlds) Stores Wien And Innsbruck

Jean Paul Gaultier is more in demand than ever before: Beginning on September 14 and 18, 2015 the French designer will be staging the exhibition spaces of the two Swarovski Kristallwelten Stores Wien and Innsbruck in his own inimitable manner. The result is a unique combination of art and Haute Couture. The new installations can be admired on the performance stage and in the glass bay windows of Swarovski Kristallwelten Store Wien from September 14th, and in Innsbruck in the Chamber of Wonder from September 18th.

VIENNA, AUSTRIA – SEPTEMBER 15: attends the Installations By Designer Jean Paul Gaultier at the Swarovski Kristallwelten Store Vienna on September 15, 2015 in Vienna, Austria. (Photo by Franziska Krug/Getty Images for Swarovski Kristallwelten)

Swarovski crystal fascinates people throughout the world. In 1995, on the 100th anniversary of the company’s founding, a special place opened that turned crystal into a living experience: Swarovski Kristallwelten (Swarovski Crystal Worlds). Together with the Swarovski Kristallwelten Stores Innsbruck and Wien, they collectively form D. Swarovski Tourism Services GmbH. As sparkling places of wonder, they combine art, lifestyle, and Austrian traditions with an internationally successful model for tourism.

VIENNA, AUSTRIA – SEPTEMBER 15: Jean Paul Gaultier attends the Installations by Designer Jean Paul Gaultier at the Swarovski Kristallwelten Store Vienna on September 15, 2015 in Vienna, Austria. (Photo by Franziska Krug/Getty Images for Swarovski Kristallwelten)

Designers such as Philip Treacy and Marios Schwab have also recently unveiled their art in these extraordinary exhibition spaces. Carla Rumler, Cultural Director Swarovski says: “Swarovski has always had strong ties to art, culture, and design. This has led to numerous innovations. The same applies to the close cooperation we have had with Jean Paul Gaultier for many years. We are particularly pleased with the exhibition he designed especially for our Swarovski Kristallwelten Stores Wien and Innsbruck.”

VIENNA, AUSTRIA – SEPTEMBER 15: The Installations By Designer Jean Paul Gaultier at the Swarovski Kristallwelten Store Vienna on September 15, 2015 in Vienna, Austria. (Photo by Franziska Krug/Getty Images for Swarovski Kristallwelten)

For Stefan Isser, Managing Director of D. Swarovski Tourism Services GmbH, the displays by Jean Paul Gaultier in Vienna and Innsbruck are yet another mosaic piece for the Swarovski Kristallwelten Stores: “Thinking and trying out new things has been the hallmark of Swarovski for generations. The joy of playing, creating, and imparting moments of wonder has always driven us. We want to make people dream, create poetry and magic.”

Jean Paul Gaultier displays highlights from his recent haute couture collections on mannequins designed especially for each location. “It’s nothing less than a love story with Swarovski. I feel like we already have children together and there are new ones to come,” says the designer. He demonstrates not only his virtuoso handling of crystal as a material, but arranges the display in his usual manner, with that typical Jean Paul Gaultier twinkle: In Vienna, for instance, he presents a mannequin in a wheelchair, and reveals it all under Marilyn Monroe’s uplifted dress as she stands on a raised cube in her legendary pose from the film The Seven Year Itch. Other mannequins are displayed under the glare of neons, dressed in nothing but crystal and tattoos – one of Jean Paul Gaultier’s strongest trademarks.

Swarovski Kristallwelten Store Innsbruck

Innsbruck welcomes visitors with a glance at haute couture creations from recent years. The models are dressed in unconventional designs, each serving as a perfect backdrop to the crystals. The low-ceilinged space intensifies the drama of the mannequins’ setting, positioned diagonally before the visitors.

Under the guidance of Managing Director Stefan Isser, a team of 380 employees devote themselves to ensuring that visitors can constantly enjoy new interpretations of the crystalline. In line with this, 2015 will see the expansion of Swarovski Crystal Worlds into a unique place of wonder. D. Swarovski Tourism Services GmbH is always surprising and always modern – a reliable partner for the tourism industry and an ongoing attraction for travelers through Austria. More than twelve million visitors from all over the world have visited Swarovski Crystal Worlds, making it one of the most popular attractions in Austria.

Filed under: Fashion, Museums & Exhibitions Tagged: Jean Paul Gaultier, Swarovski Kristallwelten (Swarovski Crystal Worlds) Stores Wien And Innsbruck, Swarovski Kristallwelten Stores