Munich/Florence. MINI is presenting a new Capsule
Collection billed MINI FASHION FIELD NOTES Capsule Collection at Pitti
Uomo 94 (12 – 15 June 2018), one of the leading fairs worldwide for
men’s fashion and lifestyle. The limited-run collection is the result
of a collaboration between MINI and The Woolmark Company dedicated
primarily to promoting young and talented designers. The 16-piece MINI
FASHION FIELD NOTES Capsule Collection sees a quartet of up-and-coming
international designers translating personal memories from travelling
into fashion pieces using the finest Merino wool. Inspiring products
for the urban traveller are the result.
“Transcending borders” – a guiding theme of MINI FASHION.
“Travelling for us amounts to more than just stepping over
physical borders, going from A to B; it’s about our experiences and
the blurring of the lines between feelings, cultures and
perspectives,” explains Sabine Ringel, Creative Lead MINI FASHION. The
products of the new Capsule Collection lend form to very personal
experiences. All four designers have sourced inspiration from trips to
foreign cities – and woven the encounters and stories they’ve picked
up along the way into garments for the collection.
Eye-catching fashion items express the spirit of the urban
traveller.
The designers involved in the MINI FASHION
FIELD NOTES Capsule Collection – Liam Hodges (UK), Staffonly (China),
PH5 (USA) and Rike Feurstein (D) – are among the most exciting new
names on the fashion scene. And most of them being alumni of the
International Woolmark Prize, one of the world’s most renowned awards
for rising stars of the fashion world. The products included in the
new capsule collection reflect the experiences of Hodges, Staffonly,
PH5 and Feurstein on their travels – using a variety of colours, forms
and material composition, and featuring contemporary, innovative uses
of wool as the principal material.
Liam Hodges, UK.
British designer Liam Hodges
lives and works in London. His work draws rich inspiration from modern
sub-cultures, hip-hop skatewear, UK streetwear and post-punk –
influences he fuses into punchy and multi-layered statements.
Signature elements include wide silhouettes, patch working and
references to hard-wearing workwear and sportswear. These
characteristics also feature in his pieces for the MINI FASHION FIELD
NOTES Capsule Collection, which tell the stories of his encounters in
New York City. “The first time I visited New York, it was as a kid
with my parents and I only really got to know Manhattan. So the second
time I went there – this time as an adult – I was determined to check
out Brooklyn and the other districts around the city. Although
everything was new and exciting, I had the feeling I’d been there
before – a sort of déjà vu. It was almost uncanny.” His designs for
MINI FASHION also have a touch of the new yet familiar, giving
classics such as jeans, denim jackets and long-sleeves something fresh
and new to say through the use of wool (and especially Wool Denim).
Rounding off Hodges’ six-piece look is a car coat, a bucket hat and a
travel pouch made from a water-repellent bonded wool fabric with
classical Prince of Wales check.
Staffonly, China.
Shimo Zhou and Une Yea founded
the still young label Staffonly in Shanghai in 2015. Their idea and
ideal of fashion combine technology and design with experiments on
materials and colours for an ironic and provocative take on the
subject that is enhanced by unusual and sculpted silhouettes. Their
designs exude curiosity and a sense of humour, not to mention the
boldness to dismantle boundaries and explore a world still unknown.
All very MINI FASHION, in other words. Their creations for the MINI
FASHION FIELD NOTES Capsule Collection focus on Greenwich Park in
England, a bolthole of tranquillity for the designers during their
studies in London. “Greenwich is the home of time. It’s an idyllic,
almost magical place with a wonderful view over London,” muse
Staffonly as they explain the background to their collection. “It’s
the perfect place to escape the city on the spur of the moment. The
greenness, the scent of freshly cut grass, Earl Grey tea and scones
remind us of the special times we spent there.” The lush green of the
Greenwich Park lawns provides the central colour theme for this
contribution to the limited-edition collection. And the Meridian Line
running through the park brings to mind the Bonnet Stripes on a MINI.
These two elements form the connecting theme for Staffonly’s ensemble
of jacket, shirt and patchwork jeans. One of the highlights of their
creation is the matching duffle bag, which also serves as a garment
bag and therefore provides a rather handy accessory for any urban traveller.
PH5, USA.
Brought to life by Wei Lin – the
daughter of a large knitwear manufacturer – and award-winning designer
Mijia Zhangin in New York in 2014, PH5 majors in advanced contemporary
knitwear. The label challenges the conventional vision of knitwear by
marrying whimsical designs with architectural dimensions of innovative
knitting techniques. PH5 sets out to create boundary-breaking knitwear
with a new and playful twist. Their pieces for the MINI FASHION FIELD
NOTES Capsule Collection are inspired by the Art Deco District of
Miami Beach. “When I first set eyes on these breathtaking buildings,
it was a very special, slightly weird feeling: a strong sense of
excitement, yes, but at the same time gentle and almost understated.
Art Deco is a hugely influential design movement for me. The design
and workmanship involved in the structures and textures are
extraordinary, but the colours and decoration have also guided me in
much of my design decision-making,” offers Mijia Zhangin by way of
backstory for the PH5 designs. The same combination of pastel colours
and special technical design features can also be found in the
Jacquard woven wool sweater with MINI and PH5 logos, sleeveless
knitted jumpsuit and hand-crocheted shawl, which doubles up as a
travel rug.
Rike Feurstein, Germany.
The work of Berlin
designer Rike Feurstein explores the fine line between art and
fashion. Deeply rooted in the almost extinct craft of millinery, Rike
sculpts hats and clothing in avant-garde shapes. With a keen painterly
eye, she experiments with surprising colour combinations, invents new
kinds of surface structures and plays with surrealist details, thus
creating contemporary, exclusive and elegant clothes and accessories.
Her three pieces for the MINI FASHION FIELD NOTES Capsule Collection
draw on impressions from a trip to Russia – and in particular the
Catherine Palace south of St. Petersburg, the original home to the
legendary Amber Room. “When it came to the aesthetics of form in my
designs for the collection, I looked back to the time of the Russian
Revolution over 100 years ago. They bring together pre- and
post-revolutionary elements with the modern aesthetic of my current
range of felt hats. The colour scheme uses gemstone colours such as
amber (for the Newsboy Cap), garnet (Bowler Hat) and emerald (Modern
Base Cap) to celebrate the splendour of the Catherine Palace.”
Limited edition – available online from this
autumn.
FIELD NOTES is the fourth MINI FASHION Capsule
Collection and epitomises the MINI brand’s open and optimistic
mindset. The collection will be on show at Pitti Uomo 94 in Florence,
Italy from 12 – 15 June 2018, and online available for purchase in
limited numbers from this autumn.
MINI and Pitti
Pitti Immagine is an annual
fashion-centric show held in Italy. The Pitti Uomo fair, meanwhile,
which focuses exclusively on men’s fashion, has taken place in
Florence twice a year since 1972. Both events promote young, aspiring
and sometimes unconventional fashion labels. In January 2015, MINI and
Pitti Immagine began an ongoing collaboration that highlights their
shared passion for innovation, attention to detail and quality, not to
mention the ability to anticipate new trends.