(Shanghai, December 11, 2023) – For the past 57 years, VANCE, a global leader in youth culture, has been promoting the creative expression of extreme sports, art and design, and inspiring and supporting everyone to take ownership of themselves with the Off The Wall's attitude to life. This year, vans has teamed up with artist Lung Ka Sing to embark on a journey of discovery and a unique New Year's gift for creative pioneers.
Created by Bubble Mart's artist Long Jiasheng, the "labubu" image is a classic monster image in his The Monsters series of picture books, with a row of pointed teeth as their distinctive appearance, seemingly ** but kind-hearted, eccentric, and love nature and adventure, deeply loved by the public. Born in Hong Kong, China, and moved to the Netherlands with his family as a child, Lung Ka Sing's artwork is heavily influenced by Nordic folklore and mythology, with black and white lines as the main line, and through wild brushstrokes and techniques, he depicts a magical elven kingdom. This time, Vans and Long Jiasheng jointly launched the Vans x The Monsters co-branded shoes and clothing series inspired by the "Labubu" monster image, which conveys the spirit of being weird and qualified in an interesting art form.
In the '80s, when I was growing up, I was hit by pop culture in skateboarding, graffiti, pop**, comics, movies, etc., and I loved to take a pair of vans slip-on, and then scribble on the shoes with all kinds of patterns and all kinds of collages, which all contributed to the foundation of my later practice," said artist Lung Ka Sheng. The co-branded design conceived this time reminded me of the happy experience of sketching on slip-on again, and it felt like a cycle of personal creative experience, vans is not just a brand for me, but a culture. ”
The three pairs of Vans classic shoes - Style 36, Era and SK8-Mid are selected for this collaboration, combining the Vans brand culture and classic elements with the "Labubu" image. The "Labubu" jagged teeth were amplified as the main feature of the IP image in the style 36 and SK8-mid shoe designs. Among them, the Style 36 shoes are based on off-white, with contrasting cherry red side stripes, and special black zigzag stitching on the side stripes to echo the IP characteristics, while the black and white lines "Labubu" are printed on the waistband and skateboard elements, and the rest of the shoe is covered with tonal checkerboard elementsThe SK8-Mid shoe is the main color of "Labubu", and the overall color scheme is brown, with white jagged side stripes for a playful presentationThe Era shoes also feature brown and three different styles of "Labubu" characters on the waistband. At the same time, the Style 36 shoes feature a crystal outsole that fits the theme of the product and enriches the design details.
For this project, I wanted to integrate my own Labubu and other The Monsters characters into the Vances culture through my own personality and interests. In fact, there are many connections between my work and vans, such as the checkered pattern and the checkered snake that have often appeared in my paintings, all of which were created under the influence of vans. ”
In addition, the Vans x The Monsters collection blends IP image with the brand's culture and recreates it as a print in clothing and accessories. The baseball jacket is made up of off-white and burgundy, while the cardigan sweater is off-white with Vans' signature checkerboard elements, and the "labubu" skateboard image is reflected in different details on both garmentsThe sweatshirt is covered with the image of "labubu" in the form of dark lines on a solid gray design.
The Vans x The Monsters co-branded footwear and apparel collection will be available at designated Vans stores in China, Vans Official ** and Vans Tmall*** from December 16, 2023