Letterpress poster
Production process: Assembling letterpress furniture
Production process: Assembling letter blocks
Production process: Photopolymer testing

Lauren Housden


Totally 
Priceless


Examining the quiet mechanics of exclusivity within luxury fashion, focusing on the Hermès Birkin. 


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Hermès clients are often expected to spend up to three times the price of the bag on other products before being offered the opportunity to buy one.

The design draws on the visual language of affordability: neon star pricing stickers typically found in discount or high street retail. This contrast serves to highlight the absurdity of luxury pricing structures. A casual tone in the text amplifys the tension between perceived value and actual cost, and prompting reflection on the constructed nature of status and access.

In the background, a selection of real Hermès items are listed — their combined value totaling over £225,000, three times the cost of a £75,000 Birkin.


Additional info



Printed at LCC in 2024
Size: 297 x420 mm

Print: Letterpress, Photopolymer
Design: Lauren Housden
Production: Lauren Housden, Raquel Ji & Jiayi Gu
Advisors: Andrew Long & Ruth Yeates
Publisher: The Rolling Drum