Acne Studios’ creative director Jonny Johansson discovered the work of sculptor Villu Jaanisoo at just the perfect moment. ’I was basically deep into a “racing” mode [last year], into everything related to racing, and I stumbled across these amazing pieces,’ the Swedish designer tells Wallpaper* in the lead-up to his latest women’s show, which took place this evening (28 February) during a busy Paris Fashion Week A/W 2024. ‘They symbolise the mood I was trying to create, and they do so in a modern way.’
The artworks in question are huge, sloping chairs crafted from hefty recycled rubber tyres, which were made by the Estonian artist over 20 years ago, back in 2001. Lent to the brand upon Johansson’s request, these ‘furniture bodies’ sat imposingly in the Paris show space, setting the scene for a full-throttle, biker-inspired collection which the brand describes as being ’rooted in toughness and human form, leather and denim’.
