Vans need little introduction – since 1966, they have consistently offered the world, and particularly skaters, the Old Skool to Classics silhouettes that are wholly etched in our collective consciousness as synonymously and effortlessly cool. Their Vault by Vans series is a premium archival series, in which over 40 years of vaulted styles are pulled from – and then reworked and reimagined with collaborators across the intersections of music, art, fashion and culture that illustrate the Vans world. Bring in Sarah Andelman, legendary founder of the hypebeast mecca, Colette store, in Paris and god-mother of the rising relationship between contemporary streetwear and luxury fashion, and we knew it was going to be an incredible edition of Vault by Vans.
Imagine, then, our excitement at discovering our very own South African designer, Sindiso Khumalo, is one of the four women (along with Fumiko Imano, Julia Chiang and Soko) that Sarah chose to bring Vans to life. Sindiso’s label is sustainably centric, and weaves together feminine silhouettes in natural fabrics such as hemp, linen and cotton, with collections that feature Sindiso’s hand drawn illustrations and prints. In a press release via Vans United Kingdom, Sindiso’s process for this series is described as ‘’Using her mother who was an activist as inspiration, Sindiso incorporated illustrations on the quarter panels of the OG Style 24 NTC LX for adults and the Classic Slip-On for kids. The illustration shows the artist’s mother on her daughter’s wedding day seen in traditional Zulu attire. Below it is an array of traditional Zulu homesteads to depict the traditional Zulu life on a modern, contemporary sneaker. This celebration of old and new continues with the Sindiso Khumalo Tee that uses water-based ink to screen print the powerful illustration of the artist’s mother at the front and at the back neck of the oversized tee’’
Here’s to more of our country’s beautiful cultures being shown on the world stage – there are so many stories to be told.
Written by: Holly Bell Beaton
