Yohji Yamamoto Ground Y's Latest Capsule Utilizes "Unfinished" 'Toy Story' Sketches

Yohji Yamamoto‘s Ground Y sub-label has been flexing its collaborative chops over the past few years, partnering with manga franchises like Devilman, One Piece and Ghost in the Shell in rapid-fire succession. Now, the line has partnered with Disney‘s Pixar animation studio to commemorate one of its best-loved film series, Toy Story, with an honorific apparel collaboration.

The capsule is concise but designed to slot in perfectly with existing Yamamoto garb, as the coat, sweaters, shirt, tees and tote are all cut in Yamamoto’s famed oversized, slouchy silhouettes. Some clever design touches are also at play, like the hooded coat’s reversible pattern, an oversized hoodie’s adjustable zippers and the extended proportions of one shirt-dress that places extra emphasis upon the graphics at the heart of the range.

Crucial to the collection is the illustrative “vintage” drawings that grace every piece, drawing from Pixar’s archives to showcase character studies and explorations of form. There’s a painterly rendering of the shy dinosaur, Rex, a smiling alien from Pizza Planet and a plethora of Buzz Lightyear silhouettes all running, jumping and posing. One item even realizes Buzz alongside Woody in an early sketch, obscuring the familiar characters with loose linework.

Look for the collaborative Toy Story items to hit Yohji Yamamoto’s web store and Japanese Ground Y outposts on January 27.

Yamamoto’s New Era collaboration recently expanded its oeuvre with a printed reusable face mask.