Onitsuka Tiger Salutes Founder Kihachiro Onitsuka With Vibrant SS20 Show
Sporty cues from basketball, racing, climbing and more.
Onitsuka Tiger’s Spring/Summer 2020 runway show took over the Shin-toyosu Brillia Running Stadium in Tokyo this week, unleashing a vibrant display of heritage sportswear as a tribute to founder Kihachiro Onitsuka. Bolstered with a “nouvelle urban sporty performance” by various athletes, creative director Andrea Pompilio pulled elements from sailing, climbing, boxing and more to present a fashionable take on athletics.
The collection revolved around five themes this season: “The New Youth; The Modern Uniform; The New Casual; The Sports Obsession; and The Free Spirit — with the attitude of ‘The Masculine Feminine,’ ‘The Genderless’ and ‘The Global Diversity.’” Casual shorts and tank tops have been crafted of mesh to embody basketball uniforms, while pieces like colorblocked tops and fitted zip-ups evoke a racing aesthetic. Functional items such as puffer coats, slick bucket hats and rain jackets set the foundation for layering, and come washed in the same punchy hues as the others: a jovial combination of orange, pink, neon yellow and indigo.
Pompilio also unveiled the latest line for the “TOKYO ONITSUKA” range. More literal in its sportswear styling with graphic T-shirts, vinyl slickers, hoodies, and chunky sneakers, the assortment was punctuated with its defining red-circle branding. Of the logo, Pomplio explained: “At the moment I saw the graphics in the archive, the red dots looked like hearts and the message ‘Onitsuka Tiger Loves Tokyo’ came to my mind.”
“TOKYO ONITSUKA” will release exclusively in Onitsuka Tiger Stores in Japan this November, though the full SS20 collection is expected to be available through a wider global release in the near future.
Elsewhere, the brand unveiled major news when it announced Will Smith as its new social media project partner.
