KENZO by Nigo
Men’s and Women’s Spring-Summer 2023 Campaign
For the brand’s Spring/Summer 2023 campaign, Artistic Director Nigo infuses KENZO’s timeless vision with a global message that echoes a ‘new generation’ mentality. The core values he affirms for the House-experience and the notions of individuality and inclusion-animate the campaign, where the different facets and optimistic nature of his work are personified through a strong cast put together by Jalan and Jibril Durimel, as well as by Paulo Sutch for the studio photos and Franck Lebon for the video.
Illustrating the elements that underlie his creative language, Nigo sets up a continuous triptych of codes, characters and locations for the campaign. If intercultural and historical codes define the KENZO collections, the characters and places give them life. They take shape in three photographic formats that unify around an international cast of celebrities: skateboarder and musician Lil Dre, singer Nina Utashiro, and models Moses Battiest, Ama Elsesser, Sunmoon Jung, Lily McMenamy, Omar Sesay, Lulu Tenney and Bomi Youn. Symbolizing the connectivity between East and West, the nautical spirit of KENZO’s Spring/Summer 2023 collection can be found in an array of iconic pieces: the sailor jacket and beret-like cap, the sailor-collared Teddy, but also in workwear and suits in Wavy Check, Micro Pixel and ‘dripping’ jacquard – to mimic the movement of water.
Outdoor portraits taken in the urban setting of Los Angeles beach by French-American photographers Jalan and Jibril Durimel show the protagonists in their preferred environment, while studio portraits and still lifes by Brazilian photographer Paulo Sutch magnify the characters and codes of the countryside. In the short films shot on the beach by Franck Lebon, KENZO’s actors introduce themselves and interpret the letters of the company’s logo in improvised acronyms that reflect their personal dreams and values.
