Martine Rose and Nike celebrate women’s football, Jun Takahashi lets us into his world, Givenchy takes it back to couture, Bottega Veneta and Robyn Lynch go into artistic endeavours. | Need To Know.

Here is what you need to know this week…

MARTINE ROSE AND NIKE CELEBRATE WOMEN’S FOOTBALL THROUGH NEW CAPSULE CAMPAIGN

Bringing back their iconic collaboration together, Martine Rose and Nike have dived into the world of women’s football through the art of sports broadcasting, cheekily titled Martine Rose Sports TV (MRSTV). Coming together, the cast in the face of TV icon Ruby Wax is joined by 129-cap England legend Rachel Yankey, Troy the Magician, Amelia Dimoldenberg alongside, Chris Lockwood, Janice Emms and Jean Elliot of the 1971 “Lost Lionesses'’ and Subbuteo champion Ruby Matthews. The signature feeling of community, enhanced by the frequent collaborators, friends and family of Martine Rose all embody the passion, drive and adrenaline of the game, representing women’s football as a catalyst of change.

Expressing her excitement for the project, the designer brought forward an idea that accurate representation matters. “I felt the women’s team should be presented as the elite athletes they are - and with the same polish and seriousness as the men’s squad. The look needed to be clean, and also not distracting - to focus on the person wearing it. The proportions are still quite compact, neat and sporty feeling, there’s a nod to that with the fabric too. I wanted to design something that felt real and would make the players feel confident and respected.”

The 2023 Nike x Martine Rose collection will be available globally starting July 25th on martine-rose.com, and via Nike and select stockists from July 27th.

UNDERCOVER’S JUN TAKAHASHI TAKES US BEHIND THE FASHION CURTAIN OF THEIR WORLD WITH NEW BOOK

Japanese designer Jun Takahashi has decided to take us into his world and give us a closer look at everything that goes down behind the scenes at his shows. Collaborating with his long-term friend and photographer Wataru, the designer aimed to reveal more about his process, on his own terms. “I can be my authentic self when a photographer is a friend of mine - meaning we can make a documentary without being artificial.”

Reminiscing back on certain memories, Takahashi’s conceptual shows have always brought a level of deeply rooted symbolism for him. “There are many memories for each season, and looking back on them is profoundly moving; one of the most impressive memories is making many BILL EVANS appear as the finale of the show ”PORTRAIT IN JAZZ”(2017SS).  When many models dressed as BILL EVANS gathered after rehearsal was such an adorable and odd scene.”

Explore more of the photographic book “RECORD (2016-2017)” by Jun Takahashi, shot by Wataru at https://store.undercoverism.com/

MATTHEW M. WILLIAMS AND GIVENCHY BRING BACK THE GOLDEN ERA OF COUTURE WITH NEW AW23 CAMPAIGN

Becoming inspired by the Golden Age of Couture in the 1960s, Matthew M. Williams took inspiration from the essence of time for Givenchy’s AW23 campaign, captured by photographer Heji Shin. The designer expressed his artistic nod and symbolism throughout the collection, which becomes amplified in the AW23 campaign through campaign stars Mona Tougaard, Karolina Spakowski and Liu Wen, all incorporating their own personal contexts within. “I wanted to express Givenchy’s new elegance by taking cues from our past and adapting them to the present. The look focuses on confidence, comfort and empowerment, three concepts that are integral to the House’s codes. Today, they are personified by Mona Tougaard, Karolina Spakowski and Liu Wen,”

Explore more of the campaign at www.givenchy.com

BOTTEGA VENETA SUPPORTS THE LAUNCH OF PUBLICATION MAGMA, A NEW REVUE D'ART

Bottega Veneta and Matthieu Blazy have become more and more enthralled with the art and beauty of magazines and publishing, with its most recent dive into bringing back a 20th century classic, the detailed revue d’art magazine. Featuring 18 artists and over 80 works of art and literary texts, these journals are sculpted as forums for artistic expression, an aesthetic manifesto of today.

Expressing his excitement and the importance across the new project, Magma’s Editor-in-Chief Paul Olivennes gets into detail about the meaning of creating a manifesto. “These magazines offered direct access to artistic creation. They were the place for the avant-garde, both artistic and literary. I started collecting them when I was very young. I wanted to revive this format, which has now disappeared, in all its aesthetic, graphic, and intellectual sophistication. I also wanted to put artists and writers back centre stage and to recreate a dialogue between them by weaving connections between their work. Magma will feature a large number of previously unpublished work, or work .created exclusively for the journal. I imagine it as a dive into the intimacy, the creative magma, of the art.”

ROBYN LYNCH ANNOUNCES DEBUT EXHIBITION ‘GREETINGS FROM IRELAND’

Irish designer Robyn Lynch has taken her green world onto other artistic mediums. She will unveil her first ever exhibition, titled ‘Greetings from Ireland’ this autumn at NOW gallery in London’s Greenwich Peninsula, aiming to explore her Irish roots and humorous style of creation, which cherishes the direct connection with her family, the art of nostalgia and the layered levels of her craft, all housed under an inflatable bouncy castle.

Keeping true to Lynch’s vision of geometrics, part of the exhibition is aiming to showcase to visitors how 2D structures evolve when combined with the different shapes of the body, additionally featuring motion sensors that pick up on body shapes and movements, allowing them to overlay garments onto guests. Expressing her excitement, Lynch expressed the personal meaning of this project alongside branching into other artistic mediums. “Being awarded the NOW Gallery 2023 Fashion Commission has been a monumental moment for my brand. I have been an admirer of the NOW Gallery fashion commission since it was established in 2015, when I got the opportunity to assist on Phoebe English’s commission whilst interning at the brand. From assisting another designer as an intern, to now having the opportunity to express my brand’s world in the same space is a full 360 moment for me. I am extremely honoured to be given the opportunity to celebrate Irish creatives and culture within the gallery walls.”

Robyn Lynch’s exhibition will run 6 Dec 2023 - 25 Feb 2024 at NOW Gallery in the Greenwich Peninsula, London. Explore more details at www.nowgallery.co.uk