MINI will once again be present at the Pitti Uomo fair in Milan this year, with a new line-up up of creations developed in collaboration with some of the best designers out there today. The new Capsule Collection sees five up and coming international designers take the stage, highlighting the creative tension that exists between their cultural roots and adopted homelands. The collaboration with MINI has produced five fashion items for urban traveller who enjoys roaming between different cultures and ways of life, both in the city and beyond.
The products from designers Diego Vanassibara, Edwina Hörl, Pronounce, Post Imperial and Perret Schaad combine traditional cultural cues inherent in their countries of origin with contemporary elements from their adopted homes. BEYOND NATIVE is inspired by one of the most diverse living environments of all: the city, MINI’s natural habitat. “MINI has always been a brand for people who dare to do things differently, to stand out,” says Esther Bahne, Head of MINI Brand Strategy and Business Innovation. “In the 1960s the first Mini became a design icon, and this heritage inspired us to launch MINI FASHION. We really wanted to stick our necks out and join with creatives to bring something new and bold to the industry.”
“The idea of this collaboration is to give a platform to five creatives with different cultural backgrounds. They know how to take the unique energy engendered by fusing different cultural influences and translate it into exceptional products,” explains Sabine Ringel, Creative Lead at MINI FASHION. “The fact that these migrants have experienced and crossed national and cultural boundaries is the very reason for the richness and depth in their designs. And they have brought these perspectives with them into the MINI FASHION – BEYOND NATIVE collection.”
Diego Vanassibara was behind the creation of the men’s shoes you see in the pictures below, the Brazilian claiming he was inspired by influences from London as well as his native village. Edwina Hörl was born in Austria but currently resides in Japan, this mixture of cultures leading to her creation, a coat for the urban traveler. Yushan Li and Jun Zhou are the two minds behind Pronounce, the label showcasing a hoodie for the urban traveler at this year’s Pitti Uomo. The man behind Post-Imperial is Niyi Okuboyejo, a Nigerian who now resides in Texas and he created a scarf while Perret Schaad is a company started by Tutia Schaad, a Vietnamese woman living in Germany. All the items put together by these designers for Pitti Uomo will be on sale this autumn.
