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Becoming a "True New Yorker" apparently takes ten years, according to word of mouth. Unless, that is, the big apple eats you up, and you lose yourself in a sea of rats, skyscraper shadows, and flickering 'Nuts 4 Nuts' stands. It's a tough business, but a worthwhile one, earning this city's respect. IRAK, the legendary downtown graffiti crew and brand built around it by member and artist Kunle Martins, is beyond that point. New York has been theirs. They have lived and breathed the school of hard knocks on every inch of the island.
Inspired by the idea of the "school of New York", and getting (or giving) an "education" by it's streets Bauer X, the offspring of Canadian hockey brand Bauer, has joined forces with IRAK on a new collection which will be released in two parts. Infusing the city that never sleeps with hockey motifs, this is a streetwear moment not to be overlooked.
Bauer 101, the core collection of Bauer X, catapults hockey attire on the streetwear map. As the majority of the pieces remain monochrome adorned with yellow graphics, Bauer X wants to highlight hockey references intertwined with street style facets to attract a certain audience — streetwear addicts. Known for their recognizable tags, graffiti collective and streetwear brand IRAK adds to the heritage look of hockey attire — an unmatched blend of sports x graffiti culture. Contrasting to the black and white main collection, Bauer X also features a classic hockey jersey emblazoned with a red "Rackers" typeface that chiefly caters to New York Rangers admirers.
The collection is composed of on and off-ice pieces including hats, long sleeves, hoodies, and t-shirts, as well as, socks, pens, and stickers. As Bauer X wants to set foot into the streetwear scene, more capsules and drops are yet to come.
Desmond Hughes and DJ Smedley of the Bauer Design team gave us some exclusice comments on process, decision making, and hockey culture.
Bauer is actually a Canadian heritage brand for hockey gear and apparel. Is tapping into streetwear something you want to expand in?
Having reigned supreme for nearly 100 years within the hockey space, we (Bauer) have attracted one type of audience. Coincidentally, hockey has remained untouched within the streetwear space. In an effort to expand the knowledge and appreciation of hockey as a cultural phenomenon, we are looking to pave the way for hockey’s integration into streetwear and vice versa.
The core collection of Bauer X, the little sister of Bauer, is called Bauer 101. Why did you choose to name it like that?
We decided to title this collection Bauer 101 as we viewed it serving as a convergence point of two worlds; streetwear and hockey. Strategically timed as a nod to the Back to School pathos, the release highlights each individual piece as a concept representing Bauer’s history, rooted in informal areas of education- the streets.
The capsule was inspired by the so-called school of hard knocks - the school of New York. How does Hockey play into the New York street culture?
The adjacency of hockey and NYC can be found at the root of both experiences. Synonymous with toughness, resilience and poetic harmony; both hockey and New York City street culture continue to provide a raw landscape of expression through legacy and creativity.
Solidarity, comradery, friendship, and community are vital concepts for sports, and especially victorious teams. How did you try to convey that in the collection?
In our campaign the goal was to encapsulate crew love and communicate all of those concepts that not only can be found in sport but also within friendship.
By collaborating with a Graffiti collective, the capsule also sheds a light on underbelly culture. What does it mean for Bauer X to work with IRAK? How did they influence the look of the collection?
Being afforded the opportunity to work with IRAK, our aspiration was to make sure we were not only representing the collective with respect and admiration but also the environment that helped shape it. Stalwarts not only in NYC but in the greater creative arena, we looked to construct a collection that acts as an ode to team identity; playing off IRAK’s design language and history.
The collection will drop on Friday, the 23rd of September.
Bauer - School of Hard Knocks from Cole Schwartz on Vimeo.
Un Cadeau De La Providence is a gift from heaven. Actually a male athleisure brand, CDLP taps into the world of feminine underwear for the first time and provides nothing less than comfort, quality, and indulgence. Their staple pieces are rendered in a clean way — but who says basic can't be hot?
Focusing on comfort, practicality, and especially quality, the Swedish brand drops a nine-piece capsule exclusively on NET-A-PORTER and the CDLP website. Since comfort is one of their main focuses, the fabric for bralettes, hipsters, briefs, thongs, and crop tops — TENCEL™ Lyocell — is resourcefully pulled in Europe and produced in Portugal.
On top of that, they treat their product development almost like working on a Ph.D. There's a constant improvement in quality going on with a special focus on sustainability and conscious sourcing. The line comes along in a subtle yet cheeky look. Also, sometimes there's just no need to add anything on top.
The collection is exclusively available on NET-A-PORTER and CDLP.
What do we shed in the face of the gods? In Retail Pharmacy’s second runway show, designer hooz stripped down industry conventions to build a world where gods walk among sheep. As the sun descended on the city, models crawled, danced, and occasionally walked the roof of 99 Canal Street’s studio space underscored by ambient musings on melody.
Sacrificial Lamb Artificial Blood, a continuation of hooz’s immersive installation Inner Flame, Outer Wave builds worlds around wearables. Each of the nine looks was formulated around a character. Gods, matriarchs, warriors, and lambs came together in hooz’s designs, connected by a loosely knitted thread. Each look and character accentuated the unique personality of its wearer, encouraging models to shed the external masks and wear the garments as their truest skin.
Playing on presentation and deconstruction, hooz and their collaborator Tweaks conceived a complementary photo story–presenting each look in its purest, static form to juxtaposed against the living, breathing and artificially bleeding embodiments of the designs as brought to life on the rooftop runway.
Blending experience and aesthetic, construction became secondary to narrative, and the mythology of the hoozverse unfolded. The collection, curated by Retail Pharmacy founder Sophia Boli captures the interdisciplinary nature of the brand.
“hooz atelier was a perfect fit for this Retail Pharmacy runway for a number of reasons. One of the most common traits of the designers I carry is that they are multi-disciplinary in their art,” Boli shared with office. “hooz makes ceramics in addition to clothing, and I have other designers who are poets, photographers, illustrators, etc. I really love celebrating people who explore their creativity in multiple ways. I think the clothing people like that produce is just a little more interesting because it comes from somewhere more conceptual. “
Explore the collection lookbook and BTS and dive into the hoozverse in our exclusive interview with the designer below.
How did you conceptualize these pieces?
How did the show bring them to life? I imagined each look as a particular character essence. The designs themselves are a range of those I’ve worked with over the past year and some were birthed out of the making process for this show specifically. Putting my garments onto a human body brings the look into a new space because my essence is merged with those of the models chosen to present the work to the world –this is why I’m highly selective in who I ask to represent the work. Each model is a muse in the sense that who they are is highly significant when considering the energy exchange taking place when dressing in one’s handmade clothes – their person, their energy activates a unique aura inaccessible through other means.
Can you tell me a bit about the mythology behind the show and of the photo story?
In 9 looks, 9 characters or …entities of the hoozverse descend upon an event space. Each possesses a potent energy to be conveyed through specified behaviors and repetitive actions. They have arrived with a graceful urgency – imagining a post-catastrophic context met with the arrival of bloodthirsty g*ds.
What's the importance to you of representing the collection in the editorial/bts/runway? How does each medium influence the work?
The editorial brings on a bit more of a controlled narrative. It creates a permanence we could simply never aim to achieve when dealing with live performance. It also has created space for even deeper levels of collaboration, as I think of the role Tweaks has played in that portion of this project as well as the bicoastal activation of creative communities – the editorial was produced and shot in Los Angeles, while all of the runway came to be in NYC. Documentation of bts and runway are so precious as well, as they become the archive of this happening. We could never replicate what took place on the rooftop of 99 Canal St. on Sept 16 2022 and we would never attempt to. Now we revel in the abundance of evidence of that unique experience.
How did you want the show to feel? How do you feel after the show?
I wanted people to feel engaged and stimulated without a sense of clarity as to what was going to happen next. I like the audience to feel a bit entranced – experiencing a sort of loss of time. Perhaps a bit jarring but ultimately a transformative experience that removes you from the immediate progressions of one’s day-to-day. I feel fresh and so grateful for everyone who invested so much into this project that I’ve spilled my blood for. I am basking in post-show glow.
California-born artist Lucien Smith, friend of office and founder of the creative non-profit network Serving the People (STP), known for his abstract paintings and multimedia work, has collaborated with streetwear brand Stüssy.
Consisting of three pieces — sweater, bomber jacket, and pants — the batch features the classic Stüssy silhouettes and cuts, modeled on Downtown artist Armando Nin.
Check out Bill Powers and Smith's conversation from issue 08 here.
The collection spotlights a camo print that appeared in a series from Smith's show Tigris, which was exhibited at the townhouse gallery Skarstedt in New York City in 2014. Within this series, he implemented elements of The Great Wave by Hokusai and indulged in abstract methods of exploring memories.
Both hoodie and sweater are shaded in a purple and orange camouflage print contrasting with the traditional forest green camo featured on the five-pocket style canvas jeans.
The collaboration is available worldwide on Friday September 16th.
Please confirm that you are at least 18 years old.