Subculture is a fashion brand based in the Philippines with its roots firmly planted on an amalgamation of Philippine and Japanese sensibilities.
The designer, Kat Joplo, created Subculture as a love letter for her passions; clothing and culture. It is from Philippine folklore that she created the core of her brand, and it is from Japanese art principles that she created the flourish for her designs.
With all that in mind, I took into account the history and culture of pre-colonial Philippines as well as the art principles from Kat's inspirations for fashion - the works of Yohji Yamamoto and Chisato Tsumori, and created a design that ultimately marries both worlds to best portray Subculture.
______________________________________________
The first thing I did was to create Subculture's typography as the typeface will be a pillar in Kat's brand identity.
The idea here was to streamline the jagged and asymmetrical look of the original into a smoother and uniform version for the contemporary. To do so, I had to use an octagonal grid to determine the dimensions of the letter. After getting the dimensions, the next step is to make a uniform shape by following the octagonal grid. Following that is to add weight to the letter width to give it an impact. Finally, giving a uniform aperture for the text to breathe should balance the heavy width and uniform look.
______________________________________________
With the typography set, the next thing to do was to create a key visual for the brand. To do so, I only had to look at lines. Given that Subculture makes use of both Filipino and Japanese aesthetics, I find lines as a design pillar to be the best way to unify both worlds. With design pillar set, what would then be the subject for the key visual? One only has to look at Filipino and Japanese folklore to find that one of the similarities in both lores is the presence of the sun and a mountain. However, the sun and mountain alone wouldn't really speak volumes of a marriage of two cultures. To further cement it, I included a story that was "weaved" into the mountain - a story that talks about childhood, community, and dreams.
______________________________________________
The next thing on the list was to give Subculture a wider reach with its audience, and so videos were needed. In the form of "Statements" - fashion lineups that look deeper into Kat's passion for culture - these videos would give the audience an idea of what Subculture stands for and what it brings. The videos would follow the design principles of the typography and key visual.
Statement One
A video on Subculture's streetwear lineup.
Statement Two
A video on Subculture's atelier lineup.
__________________________________________________
