New Creative Director Kosuke Kawamura renews UT Line

Inspiration taken from street scenes, pop culture, and art

Global apparel retailer UNIQLO today announces the start of the 2023 Spring/Summer season for its graphic UT (UNIQLO T-shirt) line, renewed under new Creative Director, artist Kosuke Kawamura. Along with the classic UT silhouette, UT is available in a newly developed oversized fit to match the graphics. Long sleeve T-shirt styles are also appearing from this season, rounding out designs for real street trends in exacting patterns down to the millimeter. 

Creative Director Kosuke Kawamura said, “The content features a formidable lineup of the world’s pop culture from universal artists, including manga, anime, and even games, beloved by people of all ages. The 23SS season kicks off by taking T-shirts back to their roots and featuring modern street culture. UT delivers LifeWear that lets wearers express their individuality and encounter new elements of culture.”

Collaborations inspired by street scenes

The Message is a line of T-shirts that convey a message, considered the origin of the graphic tee. Created with three modern artists, Cali Dewitt, Trevor Andrew, and Lakwena, who are driving the art scene in hotspots such as Los Angeles and London, the brightly colored expressions feature silhouettes reflecting the latest trends, with a heavier material. Skater Collection features images of skateboards, representative of street culture, in a collaboration with Los Angeles-born creator Alex Olson and Shinpei Ueno, who has made internationally acclaimed films while active as a professional rider. For the HYPEBEAST COMMUNITY CENTER line, four communities active in the modern culture scene freely expressed visuals conveying the culture of their generations through standard T-shirts, as well as coach jackets and long sleeve T-shirts.

Partnerships with world-renowned museums 

UNIQLO partners with museums boasting the world’s finest art collections, including MoMA (the Museum of Modern Art) in New York City, the Louvre Museum in Paris, the Tate Modern in London, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. The first partnership was launched with MoMA, in 2013, and over the years UNIQLO has sponsored a variety of programs to raise awareness of art among the general public. The Video Game Collection from MoMA is the latest collaboration line featuring a selection of beloved, enduring games with innovative digital designs, including Tetris^TM, Space Invaders, and Pac-Man. The playful designs incorporate elements that express MoMA in the worldview of the games.

Enjoying past works from pop art masters with UT ARCHIVE 

The UT brand was first introduced in 2003 as the “UNIQLO T-shirt Project” and each year the company has been delivering an astounding variety of graphic tees. UT ARCHIVE Collection marks the 20th anniversary of UT, looking back into its past to bring carefully selected designs. For this season, UT is offering popular designs from artists in the very first UT collaboration, including Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Keith Haring. This is a collection to fully enjoy the timeless masters of pop art who epitomized the 20th century.

Overview of the Collaborations

The Message

Scheduled launch date: Monday, January 23, 2023

Lineup: ADULTS T-shirts 6 items \1,990; Hoodies 3 items \3,990; 

Caps – 3 items \1,990

Store availability: All UNIQLO stores in Japan, and the online store

Special website: https://www.uniqlo.com/jp/ja/special-feature/XXXXXX

Skater Collection

Scheduled launch date: Monday, January 23, 2023

Lineup: ADULTS T-shirts 4 items \1,990; Long Sleeve T-shirts 4 items \2,990

Store availability: All UNIQLO stores in Japan, and the online store

Special website: https://www.uniqlo.com/jp/ja/special-feature/XXXXXX

HYPEBEAST COMMUNITY CENTER

Scheduled launch date: Monday, January 23, 2023

Lineup: ADULTS Long sleeve T-shirts 4 items \2,990;

Coach Jackets 2 items \4,990

Store availability: All UNIQLO stores in Japan, and the online store

Special website: https://www.uniqlo.com/jp/ja/special-feature/XXXXXX

Video Game Collection from MoMA

Scheduled launch date: Monday, February 6, 2023

Lineup: ADULTS T-shirts 5 items \1,500

Store availability: All UNIQLO stores in Japan, and the online store

Special website: https://www.uniqlo.com/jp/ja/special-feature/XXXXXX

UT ARCHIVE Andy Warhol / Keith Haring / Jean-Michel Basquiat

Scheduled launch date: Monday, February 6, 2023

Lineup: ADULTS T-shirts 12 items \1,500; Hoodies 3 items \3,990

Store availability: All UNIQLO stores in Japan, and the online store

Special website: https://www.uniqlo.com/jp/ja/special-feature/XXXXXX