The Artisinal Appeal of JiyongKim’s 1-of-1 Clarks
By nature, no two pieces of JiyongKim’s sun-bleached clothes are the same. And his upcoming Clarks collaboration is no different.
The LVMH Prize-nominated designer is known for sun-bleaching fabrics, a technique where textiles are placed outside for several months, each individually bleached in unique ways by Earth's Sun.
JiyongKim is now bringing this technique to footwear, linking up with the classic British footwear label Clarks on a four-piece capsule collection.
The collection is split into two parts, one half is available to view by appointment at the designer’s Paris showroom (open from June 20 to June 25) while the other half will be available to shop later this summer — unfortunately, JiyongKim hasn’t provided a more specific date on when the shoes will release.
Starting with the pack that's available to view in Paris, the JiyongKim x Clarks Wallabee and Desert Trek take on two of Clarks' most iconic models.
The South Korean designer has customized both of the all-black shoes through weathered, sun-bleached fabrics in a contrasting sandy hue.
There’s no official word yet on whether these two shoes will be released to the public (come on JiyongKim, give the people what they want!), however, the second JiyongKim x Clarks pack is definitely making it online on the JiyongKim webshop.
This second pack consists of two variations of the Clarks Wallabee Cup, a more chunky-soled variation of the classic Clarks Wallabee available in either black nubuck or pale khaki suede.
On the black model, Clarks’ FOB tag which hangs from the laces is sun-bleached and an extended tongue drapes over the ankle. Meanwhile, the hairy suede variation includes sun-bleached trims interspersed around the pale khaki upper.
The sun-bleaching process "varies widely and depends on... material, time of year, and chance. That’s the charm of this process: you ultimately leave things up to nature and serendipity," Kim previously explained to Highsnobiety. "We hope to [make] people question what can be considered valuable and to examine their own relationship with beauty and consumption."
The process of creating these unique, organically embellished fabrics might be long but the beauty of JiyongKim's clothes (and shoes) has proven it's worth it.
