Y/Project and FILA Want to Subvert Streetwear for SS22
While the Glenn Martens-designed mainline collection continues to reimagine conformity.
Y/Project is on the up, and for Spring/Summer 2022 it hasn’t just debuted a collection of Glenn Martens-designed masterpieces, but also a boundary-breaking collaboration with FILA.
The unexpected collaboration with the sportswear giant is in honor of FILA’s 110th anniversary, and is the perfect marriage of the two brands. From footwear to outerwear and reworked FILA classics (notably T-shirts, windbreakers, polo neck dresses, hoodies and accessories such as caps), the collaboration takes center stage and is this season’s star attraction, undoubtedly bringing Y/Project into a new streetwear realm of its own.
Each piece can be worn in multiple ways thanks to technical design elements that transform ordinary garments into avant-garde interpretations of streetwear. By incorporating double collars, multiple layers on sweaters, architectural shoulder straps, snap buttons (that will button up to create different fits), as well as asymmetrical buttoning for more interpretive looks, Y/Project delivers a new era of streetwear, one that’s androgynous, non-conformist, and asks us to explore more daring versions of what’s familiar to us.
As for the sneakers, the collaborative effort brings chunky slip-on chukka boot-like sneakers that feature a full tongue covering and a single FILA “F” logo on the toe, as well as similar silhouettes that are more basketball-indebted, showing a dual-branded tongue tag in classic colorways such as “Black/Red.”
Speaking on the collaboration, Martens says: “I see this collaboration, really, as a marriage of Y/Project’s experimental spirit and FILA’s innovative drive grounded in sportswear. The process was as easy as it was fun, and it allowed me to openly explore a streetwear direction that felt new. There is a fresh, happy vibe to the endeavor that I think is right for this moment.”
Y/Project’s in-line offerings are equally impressive, combining tailoring and formal clothes with nods to subcultures and underground realms. For example, a pair of denim pants feature incorporated cowboy-like thigh-high boots in their design, but are actually just an added panel, looking almost like chaps. Elsewhere, tailored suit pants feature a denim jean waist section, trench coats are excessive in their size but are controlled with a snatched belt, and suit blazers (notably one in baby blue) are asymmetrical and challenge societal norms.
Altogether, Y/Project’s SS22 show is one of its best. The full collection can be seen above, and you can expect the FILA collaboration to launch in March 2022.
In related news, HYPEBEAST recently sat down with Glenn Martens to discuss his vision for Diesel.
