The fashion industry is ridden with this idea, which is a bit of a conundrum. Both the industry's powerhouses and newcomers each strive to re-invent themselves according to the times, while also balancing a sense of reliability. It’s quite dizzying to witness, even more so if you're behind a label. “I’m highly critical of mass consumption, but I’m producing goods” says Brendon Babenzien of the designer's dilemma. Once the creative director of Supreme, Babenzien made headlines in February 2015 when he left the brand to re-launch his own label: NOAH.
TWO FOR THE SHOW
What: introducing BRENDON BABENZIEN'S NEW LABEL, NOAH.
When: June 2015 on hypebeast.com.
Photographed by Thuan Tran.
Intro:
There is an idea in New York City that ‘new’ is always ‘better’. We see it when we return to old neighborhoods, we feel it while dodging construction sites on the way to work. This website is based on immediacy and ‘newness’. That sentiment is more than simply ‘gentrification’ – it’s an undercurrent of furious, cyclical impermanence that scores life in the world’s capital. Take that as you will.
The first thing we must note about NOAH is that it does not scream “NEW” in bold, pretty letters; ‘new’ is, in fact, somewhere closer to an afterthought for the label. It was quietly launched to select media friends at a pop-up idea space (The Supermarket by Exposure Communications), which was more of a survey of forthcoming ideas than a showing, per se. NOAH might’ve just debuted, but Babenzien’s vision does not play into newness; it's meant to be kept, preserved, and appreciated over time—in this way, NOAH is not traditionally a streetwear brand. Really, the first go-round of NOAH seems like a practice run when compared to this second iteration, which is for buyers to enjoy long-term—in every sense.