Evisu's Comeback: Interview with CEO Scott Morrison

by Ami Kealoha

Media coverage touting Evisu's first collection designed by their new CEO and creative director Scott Morrison has been hard to miss. Looking back to the pre-WWII selvedge Levi's and Hidehiko Yamane's obsession with them that originally inspired him to found the brand in 1991, the widely-circulated story is the good ol' brand heritage angle—one that boils down to Morrison's return to a less embellished but still highly stylized look.

In efforts to regain the market that ditched Evisu when it, "got overly colorful, got cartoonish, [and] started showing up in Hype Williams music videos," as Men.style.com put it, Morrison refines the cuts of the original Evisus and introduces meticulous distressing for a perfectly worn-in look that involves days of hand finishing including using vaseline and baking them in ovens, among other techniques. When asked about the inherent irony in the of-the-moment pre-distressed look, Morrison replies, "It's a double edged sword because in an ideal world, I'd love to just offer Henry Ford models to everyone, so you can get raw [denim] or fuck off. But at the same time I know it's not going to work. You're trying to do both things."

While applying high-concept fashion to the humble American classic isn't new ground, the former Paper Denim & Cloth and Earnest Sewn designer brings expertise, a passionate knowledge of his field and knows where to give due credit. Morrison recently took some time to tell CH all about it—from the early replica movement to his vision today—at Evisu's revamped Soho showroom.

Now completely disassociated with Evisu Japan (when ownership shifted three years ago, they bought the worldwide trademark minus Japan), Morrison started by stripping out the gold columns, red and black walls with dragons and logos in favor of a more pared down aesthetic. "We tried to whitewash everything literally and figuratively," he explains, the idea being to put the jeans first, rebuilding "from that foundation to make the best denim products in the world."

The approach starts with a subtle modification to Evisu's recognizable back pocket gull in tribute to the ones Yamane hand painted on his first 14-pair collection, which themselves referenced the wartime rationing that led to the lack of stitching on the 1944 501s that started the whole thing. (Stores in Japan still hand paint them today.) Morrison's gull of course mimics what happens as it fades over time, "something that I would actually enjoy wearing rather than something that's really in your face" and staying "true to the story of what a jean would look like had you bought it abroad and then worn it over time."

Read a little more and see lots more detail shots, as well as the four new pairs, and images from "Tateoti," Evisu's book documenting worn-in denim that Morrison turned to often in reinventing the brand, after the jump.

Moleskine myDetour Project

by Karen Day

On the last leg of its nearly month-long run, Moleskine's myDetour project will soon disperse from the bookshops and art supply stores in the San Francisco area it has been so creatively taking over.

The traveling project is a tribute to artists, writers and dedicated Moleskiners everywhere, but the talented San Francisco community played a role, donating their filled-in Moleskines to special drop boxes around the city which were then judged by the famed local industrial designer and architect Yves Behar.

Those in Sf can catch the last stateside showcase before the project moves on to Tokyo. For a full list of locations housing the exhibit, see the myDetour San Francisco website.

All Day Buffet Feast Conference

by Karen Day

Exploring the ever-increasing way creativity in business impacts the world in a positive way, the All Day Buffet Feast conference explores this cross-disciplinary concept by celebrating the people who do it. With philanthropic speakers like poker player Annie Duke, grammy-nominated musician Kenna and athletic entrepreneur Brian Bordainick, to name a few, the roster makes clear that any type of person can effect change in a meaningful way, no matter their profession.

The Feast is an inspiring open dialogue about social innovation, realizing our full potential and working together to create the kind of economy where needs are filled, not created. The goal is to put a system in place that doesn't react mindlessly with the environment, but is instead harmonious with nature.

The conference will be held 1 October 2009 at the Times Center in New York City. Tickets are available for $250 from The Feast website.

Cool Hunting Guest Edits Wallpaper.com

by Bailee Wolfson

If you've checked out Wallpaper.com lately, you'll notice Cool Hunting has a spot as one of three guest editors through 30 September 2009. We're honored that Wallpaper invited us to pitch in, especially in such good company with our friends at Selectism preceding us and with Archinect still to come. We hope you check it out on Wallpaper!

White Lightning Blog x Borders and Frontiers: Wheels of Steel Tee

by Bailee Wolfson

Just surpassing the two year mark, Elizabeth Spiridakis' infectious fashion blog White Lightning recently came out with her own item of clothing, a witty t-shirt tribute to Pavement, Sassy magazine and Biggie. (Click image for detail.) After U.K.-based art collective Borders and Frontiers tasked her with conceptualizing a twist on the classic tee, she came up with "Wheels of Steel" featuring two strategically-placed 7" records, inspired by her favorite Pavement shirt (it had fried eggs instead of records) that she wore in high school. Playing on Notorius B.I.G.'s "Juicy," the track names on the albums read "it was all a dream/i used to read Sassy magazine," Spiridakis name checks the magazine that she says was "one of the biggest influences for me growing up."

Never one to take a straightforward approach to fashion, the writer (she's also written for T Magazine and TeenVogue.com, among others, and will be posting on Interview's site soon) and designer cropped her tee, enthusiastically explaining, "I am currently obsessed with crop-tops. I love high-waisted skirts and think nothing looks better with them than a crop-top!" One of the most refreshing voices in fashion continues, "I love my tee, I wear it all the time and I get a lot of compliments on it, I love that people are into it."

You can buy the t-shirt for $26 on White Lightning, but look out for it and others by bloggers including Tavi, Fashiontoast, Gnarlitude, Style Bubble, in the Borders & Frontiers series soon. See select images of those tees after the jump.

Giant Kolor Beanbags

by CH Contributor

by Jeremy Brautman

French shop and gallery, The Dirty Cream, recently selected a handful of artists to re-imagine that dormitory staple—the beanbag chair. The upshot, Giant Kolor, a series of massive 55" x 70" pillows channels a decidedly urban aesthetic. The vibrant, all-over designs evoke graffiti, toys, tattoos and video games, from Flying Fôrtress' Teddy Troops (see it after the jump and Skwak's Maniac World to Niark1's Chaos and Bunka's tribute to gluttony.

Earlier this year, I talked to Skwak about The Maniac World, which he says he tries to give rules, aiming "for a kind of coherence in an incoherent world. At first glance, it's as if my work is made up of chance: a giant mess! But for me, all is organized in this chaos. The stories I tell have a beginning and an end and a sense of follow through. The characters have personality; they have reference points. So yes, I enrich my universe, my second world, by placing in it new codes and new inhabitants every day."

On the debut of his Giant Kolor edition, I checked back in with Skwak to see how it plays a part in his unique universe. Using the two sides of the pillow to convey a dual storyline, one side continues the story of The Maniac World—a classic fight between good and evil, but peppered with references to Adam and Eve, Rick Hunter, Indiana Jones, Dolph Lundgren, Barry White and Alf. When you sit on this side of the cushion, you sit atop the hamster king, making you the god of this world. Side two represents the "simpler" (his word!) side to make you feel like a "super hero in a Maniac World."

Making their debut this week, this collection marks the largest so far in The Dirty Cream's line of artist pillows. More Giant Kolor pillows will continue to be released exclusively through the website, each in an edition of 100 for about $420 each. And if you are short on space (or cash), there are also 15" artist pillows starting at around $50. The store also stocks an assemblage of artist toys, customized sneakers and apparel.