Project | Julia Greven
Harnessing the power of illustration, artist Serban Ionescu has brought his whimsical vision to Hermès’ shop windows in Amsterdam.
Large amorphous forms in orange, green and blue loom from the Hermès windows on Amsterdam’s P.C. Hooftstraat, composing an ‘enchanted cityscape’ straight from the mind of Serban Ionescu. Known for his colourful, fantastical sculptures, Ionescu was asked by Hermès to conceive a windowscape based on the luxury brand’s 2025 theme ‘Drawn to Craft’. ‘The Still City’ installation responds by uplifting drawing as the seed for craft. It realizes Ionescu’s idea of an enchanted city view, loosely inspired by Amsterdam. Juxtaposed by the store’s mesmerizing glass-brick façade, his sculptures stand as three-dimensional drawings, covered in paper hand-painted with watercolours. Small nooks embedded in the structures are stages for Hermès’ key products of the season.
Hermès famously ‘[doesn’t] do marketing’ – a statement reiterated by executive chairman Axel Dumas in a company earnings call earlier this month, reports Fortune. And it’s proving that it doesn’t really need to: the numbers reveal a ‘15% increase in 2024 revenues to €15.2 billion ($15.9 billion) in constant currency. Sales in the last three months of the year rose 18%, pushing past analyst estimates of 10% thanks to strong demand from Japan and tourists in Europe.’ Few brands could catch up with the cultural cachet Hermès boasts that factors into this success, but it doesn’t mean it’s rested on its laurels, either. With each carré scarf, window display, store, event – and beyond – the brand puts out, it reiterates its patronage of culture and arts by working with artists, designers and craftspeople, both emerging and established.
Serban Ionescu’s fantastical art is a natural fit for the Hermèsverse. The artist’s use of colour, form and abstract narrative align with the brand’s codes and bring a burst of spring freshness. By deepening its ties to the creative world with every venture like this, Hermès communicates the unrelenting commitment to quality and authenticity that Dumas credits for its success. No window is too small: let even more European tourists flock.