Mexico calls out Louis Vuitton for using traditional pattern

The Mexican government has questioned Louis Vuitton’s use of a traditional Mexican pattern in the design of a chair, less than a month after it sent a similar letter to another prominent fashion house.

The culture ministry said in the letter dated July 5 that it was “surprised” to find one chair in the Dolls by Raw Edges collection by the Paris-based fashion house featured the designs of Mexican artists in Hidalgo.

“We feel obliged to ask, in a respectful manner, if for the elaboration of the chair mentioned you sought and, in this case, worked together with the community and its artists,” the letter said.

A representative for the French fashion house owned by LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

It is the second time in less than a month that the Mexican government sent such a letter. In June, it questioned the fashion house founded by Venezuela-born designer Carolina Herrera for “cultural appropriation” of indigenous patterns.

Fashion designers have a history of incorporating indigenous patterns into their works but the extent to which they have done so without acknowledging their origins or fairly compensating communities has become a point of contention.

Mexico’s ruling leftist National Regeneration Movement has been planning legislation to protect indigenous communities from plagiarism and having their work used by others without receiving fair compensation.