A.P.C. x Kayne: The Final Countdown
Jean Touitou and Kanye West delved into the Parisian military archives for the rapper’s latest capsule collection for A.P.C. The series of 16 garments, which marks the duo’s second collaboration, will hit shelves July 17. Between neutral-toned shirts, low-slung pants and parkas accented with fur, each piece evokes old-school uniform chic with an updated urban sensibility. Color is muted or absent, a palate of blacks, olive green, and washed-out blues. West had input into every aspect of the design process, from the initial inspirations pulled from the archives to the fabrics, shapes, and final fittings. He’s no stranger to the fashion world—before launching his own collection in 2011, West completed an internship at Fendi, complete with eight-hour workdays and coffee runs for the boss—and the combined savvy of West and Touitou is evident in these chic, minimalist garments.
Touitou has gone on record about the difficulties of working with the notoriously perfectionist, boastful rapper. “When we finally finished this collection,” Touitou told W Magazine last year, “I felt like, ‘Okay, if I made this happen, then I can achieve peace in the Middle East.'” Although West’s 2013 collection crashed the designer’s US website, this new collaboration will be the musician’s last for the French brand. The musician’s Adidas collection is rumored to conflict with A.P.C.’s work with Nike, and Touitou has stated he no longer has interest in working with other designers, after a rapid-fire group of capsules with West, Arnaud Faeh of Carhartt, Louis Wong of Louis W, and Vanessa Seward.
THE SECOND AND FINAL KAYNE WEST X A.P.C. COLLECTION WILL BE AVAILABLE AT A.P.C. STORES BEGINNING JULY 17.
