Bhutan meets Brit-Art at Kim Jones' Himalayan Louis Vuitton autumn/winter 2013 collection "Scary cute" animals by Jake and Dinos Chapman, yak felt and snow leopard print hit high notes as Kanye West, Natalia Vodianova and Marc Jacobs looked on. A backdrop of Mount Everest's summit loomed over the catwalk, the first model wore a cashmere snow leopard pattern overcoat, and one leather trunk was carried like a Sherpa's backpack: Louis Vuitton headed for the Himalayas this afternoon. Kim Jones, the young Briton in charge of Vuitton's menswear, is a restless, National Geographic-addicted, compulsive traveller. Following last season's sub-aqua themed show, he decided to about-face for winter 2013, and visited Bhutan to do his research. Mencyclopaedia: Louis Vuitton Here, Jones recounted backstage, he swapped his scarf for some hard grey stones from Everest itself (used in a very few of his collection shirt-studs), discovered Bhutanese decorative checks and stripes (used on many of the English-made suiting fabrics) and trekked to the only place in the world where tigers and snow leopards live alongside each other (hence that snow leopard pattern). Louis Vuitton menswear autumn/winter 2013 catwalk show. More mountain-sourced materials included the seamless, super-light and earthily-toned overcoats made from yak felt, a New Zealand-spun deer yarn cardigan, and aubergine-tinted down jackets made in reindeer skin. There were marble-faced carabiners and Karakorum blanket coats belted with silver-tipped climbing rope. Then, slowly, some odder elements began to crop up. The huge grey pearls pins that pierced Stephen Jones' Sherpa-hats had been engraved to resemble bulging eyeballs. Cufflinks and signet rings featured sharp-toothed teddy bears and owls with glowing rubies for eyes. And on the front of a burgundy wool jumper was curled a stylised snow leopard wearing an expression of oxygen-deprived surprise. This menacing menagerie, it transpired, is the creation of Jake and Dinos Chapman: at the request of Jones. The Chapman Brothers have drawn a new work called 'Garden in Hell' that was eventually fully revealed on jacquard evening wear and dressing gowns. All sinuous branches, evil eyes and psychotic animals, the Chapmans' pattern worked particularly well on a bags and scarves. Marc Jacobs, Kanye West and the Chapmans were all front row for a collection that brimmed with new varieties of Vuitton's all-important bags - a men's oversized Lockit, a new camera bag and a shaved V shearling crumple-topped tote - and was also the richest Jones has presented here so far. Louis Vuitton menswear creative director Kim Jones. Photo: AFP