Pretty smart for KENZO to tap the drop method when introducing new creative director NIGO's inaugeral designs.
Earlier this month, KENZO launched the "Boke" capsule using this technique and the second collection, revealed exclusively to Highsnobiety, follows in these street-savvy footsteps. Let's just say that NIGO's fans — who made sure that his first KENZO collection was sold-out in minutes — won't be disappointed.
Dropping March 5 on KENZO's website and its flagship stores, NIGO's second capsule for the LVMH-owned house takes its most famous motif and turns it on its head.
Yep, the iconic KENZO tiger has received the NIGO treatment.
The resulting product, a cheeky flip of the famous logo, reminds me of a certain cereal mascot, especially when I see that tail on the rear.
That tail, in particular, speaks to a particular NIGO design cue. See, even 30 years ago, he was conceiving trompe-l'oeil layering pieces that could, say, zip over the wearer's face to make them look like a shark.
Of course, that rear tail graphic isn't a terribly convincing bit of a shapeshifting but it's not supposed to be.
Instead, it speaks to NIGO's playful graphic expressions, where thick black lines lend cartoonish whimsy to loose illustrations.
Simultaneously, the tiger designs also nod to Kenzo Takada, the house's founder: like the "Boke" capsule, NIGO is borrowing elements from Takada's naturalistic creative practice, updating them with his own inimitable design language in a hybrid expression of the luxury label's historic output and future ingenuity.
Graced by the revised tiger branding and tail, the five-piece men's and women's capsule includes a relaxed molleton (polar fleece) hoodie, T-shirts, and another pair of cotton cargo pants executed in militaristic green, fitted with NIGO's new button design, embossed with a flower.
It's all part of KENZO's ongoing Spring/Summer 2022 capsule drops, which will culminate in the rollout of NIGO's entire seasonal collection.
