Despite Archive Fashion’s meteoric rise in recent years, it can be safe to say that we rarely stumble across people who are willing to push its boundaries. Time and time again we find ourselves drowning in a sea of copycats; look no further than the growing number of Instagram moodboard accounts, meme pages and resellers. But despite being in a state of sameness, every now and then we discover someone new, someone who strives to deviate from the norm and create a new path. Enter Kendrick.
Hailing from the desolate yet soulful city of Worcester, Kendrick has found himself immersed in the Archive Fashion community for years, having sold over 500 articles of covetable pieces on Grailed alone. Now equipped with a honed-in aesthetic and cult following on Instagram, Kendrick has begun to delve into new territories, from music to modelling and creative direction. His newest venture Cleioner is his first official step into the world of clothing design, with its first release demonstrating that clothing can truly be experienced as a second skin.
In commemoration for his first release, we at Archive.pdf have worked with Kendrick to provide an exclusive editorial and insights into the clothing. Be sure to check out Cleioner’s first collection on their website here.
"I don't want to call Cleioner a brand just yet. It’s a project to test what I can do from a design standpoint. It focuses on the things I've noticed in my life that I've always wanted to see in clothing: certain designs, certain subjects, how things are draped. The project can also be seen as me, but from a different lens."
"I first learned how to make clothes under Gloria as a mentorship for a year, learning under her and learning what it means to make clothing. My first garments weren't that great, but I definitely saw where it was leading me, it gave me a better idea of how to drape clothing and how to perceive how things fit on people, versus people just who want to make a t-shirt and put a fucking brand on it. I literally did not want to do that. I want to make something I really like that's something that I don't see very often, and this was it."
"The top and the bottom were originally based off psychiatric wards from the 1950s. That's why there are cutouts on the arms and slits on the elbows, it allows people easy access to hit into the vital points, to inebriate the wearers if they get too crazy. The whole concept around it is very much Kiko-esque. For the choice of colors, the white was just a uniform concept, and the red was to base it off vitals and how it emphasizes on your body, how it fits on you. It's supposed to be comfortable and it's supposed to be easy. Just like how athletic wear is supposed to be in the same way."
"I think people get to choose what will become the next fashion thing. At this point, I can't say this is going to be archive. I think people get to choose that. It's up to them to be like, "I want this to be part of my archive collection." And if it does, then I'm grateful. But I mean, when it gets there, it gets there, right? The audience chooses everything. The audience chooses what gets to be cool and what's not. It's up to them."
Photographer: George Annan
Writer: Riv
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