Dutch designer Duran Lantink was first put on the map last year when Janelle Monáe wore his iconic "Vagina Pants" for the music video to her song "PYNK." Since then, the fashion powers that be have taken notice: He became a semi-finalist for the prestigious LVMH Prize for Young Designers, where heavyweights like Bernard Arnault got to see his firsthand his sustainable approach to fashion.
Now, luxury London-based boutique Browns has enlisted Lantink to create a one-of-a-kind capsule collection that repurposes old, deadstock fabric from its warehouse. He was given free creative reign to use the retailer's previous season styles from different designer collections and rework them into completely new pieces for men and women.
Browns also commissioned a series of short films as part of a three-part docuseries spotlighting leading voices in the fashion and sustainability fields. Lantink's video is the first to be released, which sees him in his studio talking about his design process and commitment to upcycling. A video from NYC next-gen talent Collina Strada is next on the horizon, followed by a short film with The Bear Scouts, an organization that ensures products are made in a sustainable and ethical way.
"I think repurposing old stock is the way forward, it's the modern mind-set," Lantink says in the clip. "Everybody needs to find [their] own way of building a more supportive and positive future."
The collection is part of a month-long project for Browns focusing on sustainability and designers who are championing causes that protect our planet. Other brands slated to launch their own sustainable capsules with the retailer this month include Bode, By Walid and Ahluwalia Studio.
All of these exclusive capsules will fall under the retailer's "Conscious" edit, a curation of brands that are tagged with "Conscious" labels online and in-store. Browns partnered with Farfetch and "Good on You," an organization that sets ratings for ethical fashion brands, to determine which brands should carry these tags.
The collection will launch online on October 10 at BrownsFashion.com, as well as at an installation at its Shoreditch, London outpost Browns East.
Photos courtesy of Browns