The France based artistic duo Zim & Zou have been commissioned by Hermès to create a storefront for their Shanghai Hermès Maison. The duo has drawn inspiration from the inherent magic of childhood visits to museums of natural history to create figurines of all kinds of biological curiosities. From oversized butterflies and birds to insects and fish, Zim & Zou has intricately crafted creatures from a massive amount of leather and paper pieces, sourcing used offcuts from the Hermès workshops in Paris.

Layers and layers of detailed cut fins, feathers and tiny feet make up for an eclectic combination of vibrant sculptural critters such as owls, peacocks, crabs and caterpillars. Combined in the storefront, these creatures form a ‘Wunderkammer’ of artistic characters for passers-by to relive the experience of walking through the corridors of mysterious museums. Thematically, the store windows are influenced by nature – the two main ones refer to water and air while the smaller ones are inspired by earth. Previously seen in Zim & Zou’s installation at the Barcelona store of Hermès, the orange leather fox comes back in Shanghai in one of the narrow display cases. The project took about three months of meticulous work and the support of local artisans.