An Insight on CABINZERO and the V&A Collaboration

“Travel is an art.” It has always been an aspiration for us to add a beautifully designed twist to our classic bag lines. In collaboration with the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, we created four unique prints combining vibrant colours and exquisite floral motifs inspired by stunning designs held in the museum’s magnificent archives. We will have a look further into the history of this collaboration, the V&A and these 4 meticulously designed patterns. Introduction to Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) is the world’s leading museum of art, design and performance. Founded in 1852 in London during the reign of Queen Victoria to make works of art available to all, today it provides a place of inspiration, discovery and learning through its mission to enrich lives through design. The museum’s 145 galleries display the finest examples of the decorative arts from textiles and ceramics to sculpture and photography. V&A Exterior © Victoria and Albert Museum, London History of the V&A Established in 1852 to make works of art available to all and to inspire British designers and manufacturers, the V&A gained its current name in 1899 when Queen Victoria laid the foundation stone of a new wing and renamed the Museum in memory of her husband, Prince Albert. The earliest parts of the V&A buildings date back to 1857, with additions throughout the 19th century. Since 2001 the museum has been going through a comprehensive programme of restoration and redesign. V&A Touring Exhibitions The V&A’s touring programme is one of the largest in the world and they deliver a high-quality product to a variety of institutions internationally, working flexibly to accommodate the needs of individual venues and diverse audiences. Their extensive international touring programme stages exhibitions which combine world renowned curatorial expertise with exceptional objects both from the V&A and other institutional and private collections. For more information on V&A touring exhibitions click here. Introduction to CABINZERO and the V&A Collaboration It all leads back to Tokyo, Japan - when our founder and CEO Neil Varden visited the Tokyo Big Sight for an art exhibition in 2018. CabinZero would not have this V&A collaboration today if he had not met the representatives from the V&A, who were having a licensing stand in the exhibition centre on the same day. After several meetings with the V&A in London, the brand was able to develop the CabinZero V&A Line which contains 4 exquisite patterns: Night Floral, Azar, Spitalfields and Paisley - which has become one of the best-selling lines in the CabinZero family. CabinZero’s collaboration with the Victoria and Albert Museum offers a stylish and unique twist to our classic backpacks and travel accessories. We value the beauty and diversity of the patterns that the V&A is well-known for, and combine them with all the trademark CabinZero backpack features. CABINZERO and the V&A Collaboration: Introduction to the Patterns Azar Pattern name: Azar Place of origin: Iran Dress fabric, woven silk with metal thread, Iran, 1800–50 © Victoria and Albert Museum, London Richly patterned with flaming lotus flowers, our stylish bag takes its inspiration from an extraordinary Iranian textile in the V&A collection. Originally woven in Iran in the mid-19th century as a dress fabric, the pattern reflects our love of the textile arts from the Middle East for this travel-focused collection. The V&A has an unrivalled collection of Iranian textiles from the first half of the 19th century, with over 900 examples of woven, printed and embroidered fabrics. Night Floral Design for a printed cotton, William Kilburn (1745–1818), England, 1788–92 © Victoria and Albert Museum, London Richly patterned with jasmine, our stylish bag takes its inspiration from an album of designs for textiles by William Kilburn in the V&A collection. Originally designed as a dress fabric, this pattern shows the Georgian era’s passion for designs inspired by East Indian textiles. The story behind the exotic floral pattern reflects our love of discovery for this travel-focused collection. Irish-born William Kilburn was undoubtedly the most famous designer of block-printed cotton in the 18th century and his work was admired and imitated during his lifetime. The Kilburn Album, which is one of the V&A’s most treasured items, holds 200 botanical designs for printed textiles. Paisley Design for a shawl, George Haité (1825–71), England, about 1850 © Victoria and Albert Museum, London Richly patterned with the buta motif, our stylish bag takes its inspiration from the work of the textile designer, George Haité, in the V&A collection. Originally designed for a Victorian woollen shawl, the bold and colourful pattern reflects our love of the paisley's journey from Persia to high Victorian fashion for this travel-focused collection. Exported from India in the 18th century, and named after a town in Scotland that produced textiles in the 19th century, the distinctive curving paisley motif is well-travelled. George Haité was a well-known and prolific designer of shawl patterns. By 1850 he and his fellow designers were drawing enormous and fantastic all-over patterns based on the stylised teardrop or pinecone motif. Spitalfields Pattern name: Spitalfields Design for woven silk, James Leman (1688–1745), Spitalfields, London, 1718 © Victoria and Albert Museum, London Richly patterned with a Spitalfields silk design, our stylish bag takes its inspiration from the designs of Huguenot silk weaver, James Leman, in the V&A collection. Originally produced as fashionable fabrics for dress and accessories, this design shows the Georgian era’s passion for chinoiserie. The discovery of the astonishing skill of the journeyman weavers behind this pattern inspired this travel-focused collection. Leman was a master weaver, designer, and prominent member of the Spitalfields silk industry in London's East End. His fragile yet vibrant album is one of the V&A’s greatest treasures, containing the earliest-known English designs for woven silk. Shop CabinZero V&A Line here.