Obey x Levi’s 2009 Fall/Winter Collection
by Eugene Kan, October 20, 2009
Shepard Fairey’s Obey clothing brand teams up with Levi’s on an upcoming capsule. This marks another collaborative venture from Levi’s who recently has sourced other notables in the realm of fashion and art. The collection includes various pieces inspired by Fairey’s own experiences with Levi’s denim. The collection includes two pairs of denim in the 511 and 514 cut, two denim jackets, a flannel shirt and three t-shirts. Prices will range from $34.50 USD – $148 USD and will be available on October 29th.
WORLD REKNOWNED STREET ARTIST SHEPARD FAIREY AND THE LEVI’S® BRAND TEAM UP TO UNVEIL NEW, LIMITED EDITION COLLECTION
The pioneering jean company partners with Fairey and OBEY Clothing to co-design collectible denim styles and debut original Fairey artwork and a new poster graphic for the Levi’s® brand. Fairey to unveil a new art mural at a live installation and appearance at the Levi’s® Store in Times Square.
SAN FRANCISCO (October 19, 2009) – This October, the Levi’s® brand – the name responsible for the invention of the blue jean – continues its ever-evolving relationship with acclaimed street artist Shepard Fairey by unveiling Obey x Levi’s®, a collection of co-designed, street-inspired styles for men. Obey x Levi’s® is a celebration of the renegade spirit embraced by both pioneering partners and features denim silhouettes, distress details, and finishes inspired by Fairey’s personal collection of Levi’s® jeanswear and collaboratively developed by Levi’s® and Fairey.
The highly collectible Obey x Levi’s® capsule collection will be carried exclusively at select Levi’s® Store locations in New York City, San Francisco, Chicago and Santa Monica and at www.levi.com. It will be available beginning October 29 and will range in price from $34.50 to $148. To commemorate the launch of the collection, on October 29 Fairey will unveil a series of four new poster designs at a live art installation outside The Levi’s® Store in New York City’s Times Square. Once Fairey completes the installation, he will meet-and-greet event participants while autographing free museum-quality reproductions of his new posters.
The series of four limited-edition Shepard Fairey posters will be given away as a free gift, while supplies last, with the purchase of any item from the Obey x Levi’s® collection in the following Levi’s® Store locations: Times Square and Soho in New York City, Union Square in San Francisco, Santa Monica and Chicago. The front side of each of the four double-sided posters features artwork that exists as a standalone piece. The reverse side of each poster also includes one piece of an oversized mural image specially designed by Fairey. This fifth “bonus image” can only be created by collecting all four poster designs and combining them together.
“I’ve always felt that keeping my art bold, simple and refined was a way to cut through the clutter, and it’s a formula that Levi’s® has used for decades that keeps them accessible and populist yet stylish and relevant,” said Shepard Fairey. “The posters I created for Levi’s® are a return to the roots of my style: one side with an industrial propaganda poster feel that connects with the heritage of Levi’s® as a brand for workers, and the reverse side reflecting my other biggest influence, punk rock, and the connection of Levi’s® to punk and rock in general.”
“Shepard Fairey is a groundbreaking innovator who has changed the way art is perceived and consumed in our world today. His revolutionary work uniquely reflects the optimistic, pioneering spirit of the Levi’s® brand, making Obey x Levi’s® a truly authentic collaboration,” said Doug Sweeny, vice president of Marketing for the Levi’s® brand. “As fans and loyal supporters of Shepard’s pioneering art, we are proud to introduce this special clothing collection rooted in Shepard’s favorite Levi’s® styles.”
A graduate of the prestigious Rhode Island School of Design, Shepard Fairey was catapulted to super stardom last year when his “Hope” poster became the predominant image of President Obama’s successful campaign. But it was Fairey’s “Obey” guerilla art campaign that first gained mass attention nearly a decade ago. His now infamous “Obey” images of Worldwide Wrestling Federation star Andre the Giant continue to appear on public canvases worldwide today and inspired Fairey to create OBEY Clothing – a collection of street and skate-inspired apparel he introduced in 2001. Fairey’s unique art and view of the world captured the attention of many fans at Levi’s® and in 2002, the brand proudly sponsored Authentik – one of Fairey’s first art shows. The show, which was held at the Levi’s® Vortex Gallery in the San Francisco Levi’s® Store, marked the beginning of the relationship between Fairey and his favorite denim brand. Since then, there have been several collaborative projects including a series of one-of-a-kind “Obey” 501® jean art pieces, a timeline portrait collection of punk and rap music trailblazers and a silk-screened image of Levi Strauss that Fairey created to pay homage to Levi’s® jeans founder. Earlier this year, the Levi’s® brand proudly sponsored Fairey’s first-ever, career retrospective museum exhibition at the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston. Levi’s and Fairey® also created a co-designed denim tote bag that was sold exclusively at the ICA Boston’s museum shop to commemorate the show and benefit the museum.
The launch of the Obey x Levi’s® collection is the latest result of the ongoing collaborative relationship between Levi’s® and Fairey relationship. The line consists of a tightly-edited assortment of eight essential menswear pieces that showcase fits, finishes, rips, patches and design details selected by Fairey and inspired by his personal collection of Levi’s® denim. Each piece is a hand-customized original, punctuated by “spray paint” drip details, stenciled art imagery, pins and “wear and repair” finishing touches. The collection is replete with exclusive branding details including an “Obey” Giant tabdevice that lives alongside the iconic Levi’s® Red Tab and a “Two-Horse” rear waistband patch that also includes a stylized “Obey” Giant face. Artfully executed, the Obey x Levi’s® collection is aggressively worn to evoke the look and feel of one’s favorite pair of jeans. Each pair of jeans, denim jacket and flannel shirt comes with a specially designed, co-branded bandana. The collection consists of:
• Obey x Levi’s® 511 Skinny Jean in black over-dyed denim with various distressed “Obey” patch details.
• Obey x Levi’s® 514 Slim Straight Jean –The jeans Fairey wears modernized with a dimensional, textural finish, custom destruction and “Obey” patchwork.
• Obey x Levi’s® “Spray It” Trucker Denim Jacket featuring spray-paint drip details, a sewnin black French terry hood, covert interior pockets and custom artwork throughout the interior of the jacket.
• Obey x Levi’s® “Bomb” Trucker Denim Jacket, in a black, top-coated, blue denim punctuated by a tonal black spray-painted surface, “Obey” patches, herringbone tape inserts, covert and custom, exclusive artwork sewn into the jacket’s interior.
• Obey x Levi’s® Overdyed Flannel Woven Shirt, featuring pigment, spray paint and bleach drip details and custom surface patches.
• A series of three Obey x Levi’s® super soft, aged t-shirts, each featuring collaborative artwork.
The Obey x Levi’s® collection is the latest in a number of art and design alliances introduced by the Levi’s® brand. Recent collaborations include clothing collections developed with Robert Geller, Engineered Garments, British art sensation Damien Hirst, and The Andy Warhol Foundation for The Visual Arts; a poster series conceived by famed graphic designer Stefan Sagmeister and a series of marketing campaign images captured by acclaimed photographer Ryan McGinley.
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