PARIS — Kim Jones is hitting Miami with his Dior pre-fall men’s collection as the city gears up for Art Basel Miami Beach, a highlight of the year for artists and collectors. But the designer is breaking with recent tradition by collaborating not with a fine artist, but a man equally famous for his distinctive penmanship: Shawn Stussy.
The founder of the Stüssy brand, whose signature first appeared on his handcrafted surfboards before becoming one of the world’s most recognizable clothing logos, has been largely absent from the fashion scene since leaving the brand in 1996, with the exception of a brief return under the S/Double label a few years ago.
But Jones, a fan since his teenage years, had no trouble coaxing the streetwear pioneer out of retirement.
“There wasn’t much luring,” Stussy said at Dior’s headquarters in Paris. “I was just in a good place in my adventure, and he’s in a good place, and the stars just seemed to kind of line up. And if I’m going to come out for a last hurrah, why not with Dior? That’s the way I look at it. It’s the very top of the top. I have nothing but respect.”
The founder of the Stüssy brand, whose signature first appeared on his handcrafted surfboards before becoming one of the world’s most recognizable clothing logos, has been largely absent from the fashion scene since leaving the brand in 1996, with the exception of a brief return under the S/Double label a few years ago.
But Jones, a fan since his teenage years, had no trouble coaxing the streetwear pioneer out of retirement.
“There wasn’t much luring,” Stussy said at Dior’s headquarters in Paris. “I was just in a good place in my adventure, and he’s in a good place, and the stars just seemed to kind of line up. And if I’m going to come out for a last hurrah, why not with Dior? That’s the way I look at it. It’s the very top of the top. I have nothing but respect.”
Kim Jones and Shawn