Kobi Levi pivots creativity to coronavirus-themed handbag collection

His newest collection includes a 'Face It' handbag, shaped like a mask.

By SARAH BEN-NUN
‘Face it’ handbag, designed by Kobi Levy. (photo credit: Courtesy)
‘Face it’ handbag, designed by Kobi Levy.
(photo credit: Courtesy)
Kobi Levi, an internationally renowned designer and a graduate of Jerusalem's Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, has found the theme for his latest handbag collection: the coronavirus.
"Why put in the work to create an item that, at first glance, the public doesn't quite need right now?" he asked, adding that he sees his mission as that of reviving a "deserted" accessory.
His newest collection includes a "Face It" handbag, shaped like a face mask.
Levi has previously designed shoes for Lady Gaga, Fergie and, most recently, Netta Barzilai.
Another one of his bags, "Lock Down," is shaped like a lock.
For Levi, the joy and creativity is in taking inspiration from the world around him. It's finding items that serve as symbols, and no item does that quite as well right now as a face mask.
The "Face It" handbag was inspired by Levi seeing people around him hold their masks like a bag.
Levi started with shoes, designing them for 14 years before he got an email asking him to design shoes for Lady Gaga's music video for the song "Born This Way."

“I like to blend the line between art and design,” Levi said in a 2015 interview about the shoes.

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“The shapes" of the shoes, he said, "were interesting – and I loved the fact that you can also wear it. It’s not just an object lying around, collecting dust.”


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