ART & FASHION:

Following Felipe Oliveira Baptista’s departure earlier this year, Kenzo has now appointed NIGO as its new artistic director.

NIGO is best known for his work in the streetwear space, having built his brands A Bathing Apeand Human Made over the years. He will be the first Japanese designer to join the fashion house ever since Kenzo Takada resigned back in 1999 from his namesake label.

Sidney Toledano, Chairman and CEO of LVMH, shared in an official statement: “I am convinced that the creativity and innovation of NIGO, as well as his attachment to the history of the House, will fully express all the potential of Kenzo.” The designer noted the connection that he shares with Kenzo: “I was born in the year that Takada Kenzo san opened his first store in Paris. We both graduated from the same fashion school in Tokyo. In 1993, the year that Kenzo joined the LVMH Group, I started my career in fashion.” He further added that the new appointment will be “the greatest challenge of [his] 30-year career.”

NIGO will officially start at Kenzo as artistic director on September 20.On July 8, PacSun announced its first-ever guest artistic director: A$AP Rocky. The collaborationwith Rocky’s A$AP Worldwide will have Rocky supervise designer collaborations, brand campaigns, in-store activations and more over the next 18 months.

“This partnership is special to me because it’s a collaboration that combines my roots, A$AP Worldwide and some of the most respected heritage brands that have roots in both the sportswear and lifestyle worlds,” Rocky shared in a statement. “Together with PacSun, we will be releasing several limited-edition collections that are both nostalgic and forward at the same time.”

Rocky and PacSun’s first drop will be with Vans set to release on July 16. The collection will feature three Old Skool silhouettes in black canvas, white leather and silver reflective colorways. “We are really excited to embark on this journey,” PacSun’s president Brieane Olson said. “He has been an amazing collaborator for us when it comes to storytelling.”

Olson also added that with Rocky now on board, PacSun aims to expand its core consumer age range of 16 to 24 years old, to 28 to 30 years old. “We’re super excited about the activations and are working down to the wire with Rocky’s team to get the details right,” Olson further explained. “We’re launching billboards in DTLA, wheatpasting in both cities, and we have our special visual video assets on Tiktok that’ll be supporting as well.”

In addition, Rocky and PacSun are working on “live shopping events activations on TikTok and philanthropic pieces,” as well as collaborations with influencers similar to what the label worked on with Emma Chamberlain earlier this year.

Stay tuned while we wait for more details about Rocky and PacSun’s range with Vans.