The Realest Real by Carrie Brownstein
There’s no brand out there that’s doing it quite like KENZO. Since creative duo behind Opening Ceremony Humberto Leon and Carol Lim took over the Parisian brand, it’s enjoyed a new kind of spotlight it hasn’t really had since its 1970s heyday.
Taking inspiration from founder Kenzo Takada’s original designs and adding their own contemporary eclecticism, they’ve breathed new life into the label’s collections, making it an industry darling and street style favourite.
It’s not just the iconic tiger sweatshirts, clashing tiger prints and experimental Victoriana-style silhouettes that makes KENZO exciting though; Leon and Lim take their creativity to the whole brand, going beyond the catwalks and doing things a little differently.
Take its first fragrance launch, for example. Not satisfied with the usual woman-in-a-bedroom type advert, they enlisted Spike Jonze (Being John Malkovich and Her) to direct a short film that lived up to the hype it created and may just be the most talked-about perfume ad ever to be aired (watch it
They’ve gone one step further for KENZO’s AW16 campaign; a full six minute, forty second film, The Realest Real is a commentary on modern society first and advert second. Directed by Portlandia’s Carrie Brownstein, the film explores our obsession and reliance upon social media, and the lines it has blurred between real life and celebrity. Of course, the characters (played by Laura Harrier, Natasha Lyonne and Rowan Blanchard) are all dressed head-to-toe in KENZO.
Watch The Realest Real below and shop the collection on Coggles here.
