A Traditional Bolivian Craft Kept Alive on Rugged, Handmade Japanese Bags
PORTER's latest collection is not just a series of playfully patterned bags: It's the work of local tradespeople keeping alive a traditional form of fabric making.
This is a project led by THE INOUE BROTHERS, a Copenhagen-based design studio founded by Japanese siblings dedicated to responsible production methods. In partnership with TIB, PORTER has tapped a workshop in El Alto, Bolivia, to update its signature military-inspired bags. The result? A meshing of two opposing, inherently different materials: hardwearing, no-nonsense nylon combined with traditionally patterned woven fabric.
Against the backdrop of PORTER's typically rugged craftsmanship, panels of aguayo fabric made in the Bolivian workshop emerge on three bags: a waist bag, a backpack, and the brand's Balloonsac model (the latter is a style of drawcord-wielding crossbody bag, FYI).
And accompanying each bag is a handmade finger puppet made in Bolivia. An indisputably cute extra touch.
Offered in either navy blue or olive green, the three bags will be released on January 18, hot on the heels of PORTER's collaboration with Starbucks, released on January 16.
PORTER is known to be partial to collaborations with other brands, as indicated by a continued outpour of varied co-branded link-ups. These new releases are indicative of the wildly disparate parties that PORTER is keen to invite into its world: One day, it's working together with a huge, multinational coffee conglomerate, the next it’s teaming up with local craftspeople. PORTER's military-infused bags truly can do it all.
