Acne Studios throws open its archives and hands the keys to Hussein Chalayan: twelve pieces born from the dialogue between the designer’s experimental construction and the eye of Jonny Johansson. Patchwork denim, a twisted jean with trompe-l’œil python print, silhouettes borrowed from Manifest Destiny... the season’s most deliciously fun collab doesn’t bother faking nostalgia.
Acne Studios and Hussein Chalayan: what’s behind the collaboration everyone’s talking about?
If you want a single piece that sums up the season without committing to a full look, go for a jean from the capsule: it carries both Acne Studios’ history and Hussein Chalayan’s inventive eye, and works just as well under a blazer as under an oversized jumper.
What happens when a Swedish label seeks out a cult designer of experimentation to reopen its archives? Acne Studios has invited Hussein Chalayan to revisit three collections that shaped his vocabulary: Ventriloquy (2001), Medea (2002) and Manifest Destiny. Twelve pieces in all, conceived at the crossroads of Chalayan's experimental construction and the eye of Jonny Johansson, co-founder and artistic director of Acne Studios.
Jonny Johansson sums up the intention plainly: he wanted, he says, to “bring his work into the present”. Hussein Chalayan, for his part, sees the collaboration as a chance to “look at his past work from a different angle”. Two generations, one shared obsession with construction.
What’s actually in the capsule?
The capsule puts denim through every permutation. There are patchwork jeans, pieced together from contrasting denims, and shirts built on the same principle, from inset panels. Two of Acne Studios’ signature jeans run through the collection: the 1996, the label’s first five-pocket jean, and the 2009, its regular-fit cut.
Other silhouettes look to Hussein Chalayan, with layered constructions that echo his Manifest Destiny collection. The wardrobe also allows itself a touch of fantasy with a twisted jean featuring a trompe-l’œil python print. Finally, this capsule continues the research begun with Denim Hystoria, Acne Studios’ spring/summer 2027 show devoted to denim.
Where to see (and shop) this autumn’s collab?
The campaign was shot at the V&A East Storehouse in London: the new pieces sit alongside historic garments by Hussein Chalayan. Behind the silhouettes, a huge rug seems to pour down onto the floor. It's the work of Faig Ahmed, an artist known for turning traditional rugs into sculptural artworks.
The collaboration comes with a book, Reference: Hussein Chalayan, published by Acne Studios and edited by curator and editor Charlene Prempeh. Limited to just 1,000 copies, it brings together archives, photographs and texts examining the designer’s lasting influence on fashion and design. The capsule is already available online and in a selection of international stores, including the one on rue Saint-Honoré in Paris; the book, meanwhile, will be available online as well as through a selection of stores and partners.
Between patchwork denim, archival silhouettes and an artist-designed rug, this collaboration has the elegance of never taking itself too seriously while still getting every detail right. If you want a single piece that sums up the season without committing to a full look, go for a jean from the capsule: it carries both Acne Studios’ history and Hussein Chalayan’s inventive eye, and works just as well under a blazer as under an oversized jumper. The capsule is already available online and in a selection of stores, including the one on rue Saint-Honoré in Paris.
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