When Fashion Meets Art: The Daily Paper X Van Gogh Museum

Capturing the ordinary and making it extraordinary, the collaborative capsule launches worldwide on Saturday, February 15

Inspired by the life and work of Vincent Van Gogh, Dutch clothing brand Daily Paper has designed a capsule collection in partnership with the Van Gogh Museum, incorporating several of Van Gogh’s masterpieces into a range of garments. A collaboration which sees the worlds of fashion and art merge.

Today, Daily Paper and the Van Gogh Museum will open its doors to the public for a preview of the collaboration through an official launch event at the museum itself in Amsterdam. From Saturday, February 15, the collection will be available both online via dailypaperclothing.com and the vangoghmuseumshop.com, and physically at the Daily Paper flagship store and the Van Gogh Museum Shop in Amsterdam, along with selected retailers worldwide.

WEARABLE ART

The capsule consists of 21 pieces, including jackets, trousers, and t-shirts. Given unprecedented access to Van Gogh’s drawings, paintings, and quotes, each custom-designed garment incorporates pieces of the famous painter’s work reproduced in high-resolution and full colour as contemporary graphic prints.

Alongside some of his more iconic works such as Irises (1890) and Self-Portrait as a Painter (1887-1888), several lesser-known sketches and works by Van Gogh also play a significant role in this clothing line, offering an accessible introduction to collectible and wearable art.

"Some of Van Gogh’s less popular works are just as masterful as his better-known ones, yet not a lot of people are aware of them. That’s why we decided to focus on them,“ commented Abderrahmane Trabsini, co-founder of Daily Paper.

For several designs, the paintings are combined with quotes by Van Gogh to give new context and meaning to his body of work. In one piece, Garden of the Asylum (1889), which he painted while he was a patient at an asylum in Saint-Rémy, is combined with the quote, "Success is sometimes the outcome of a whole string of failures", creating a thought-provoking statement on how a fierce determination can drive creatives like Van Gogh to insanity in the pursuit of perfection.

"This collaboration with Daily Paper presents us with a fantastic opportunity to connect youth culture with Van Gogh’s art, making the relationship between the two stronger and more accessible," said Martin van Engel, Program Manager of the Van Gogh Connects research programme – a four-year learning pathway in which the museum explores how it can become more relevant to young adults with a bi-cultural background. Daily Paper has always had close links with youth culture, making it a valuable partner for Van Gogh Connects.

"Collaborating with the Van Gogh museum allowed us to show a different side of our culture, because if you know Daily Paper, we mainly focus on our African culture, but we also have our Dutch upbringing in common," said Trabsini.

1 / 10

Shot in Amsterdam, the collection campaign reimagines a selection of the artist's masterpieces as seen through the eyes of Van Gogh, would he be alive today. Captured by the young up-and-coming Dutch photographer Nick van Tiem, the shoot sees the medium of photography rather than the paintbrush or drawing pen as a vessel for a present-day Van Gogh’s art.

A photo echoing The Potato Eaters (1885) replaces the farmers of the 19th century with multicultural youth. Van Gogh’s Wheatfield with a Reaper (1889) is reimagined as both a solitary worker captured in an ordinary day-to-day field – a supermarket – or as youths gathered on the football pitch. A modern reenactment of a self-portrait of the artist sees his straw hat replaced by the afro of a young black creative. This could be what the Van Gogh of today would depict.

CREDITS

Art Direction Beri Dalgali, Dennis Schreuder, and HERC

Photographry Nick van Tiem

Talent Ibsan, Devancey, Destiny, Safae, Dina

Styling Dennis Schreuder and Marleen Ettema

Production HERC

Hair and makeup Bastien Zoretto

"We're tremendously proud of this collaboration. This collaboration is appealing because the founders of Daily Paper are not only inspired by Van Gogh, but also share similar journeys as self-taught creatives. This collaboration allows us to reach a new international audience outside of the museum’s walls. Vincent can be a role model for everyone," said Laurine van Rooijen, Head of Licensing and Wholesale at the Van Gogh Museum.

The collection is also accompanied by a short documentary. In the film, documentary maker Safi Graauw shadows the three founders of Daily Paper: Hussein Suleiman, Jefferson Osei, and Abderrahmane Trabsini. How are they inspired by Vincent Van Gogh? The film explores the parallels between how Van Gogh and Daily Paper see the world around them. The documentary premieres at the Van Gogh Museum today, and will subsequently be available on the museum’s YouTube channel.