The contours of Hood By Air’s comeback have so far hinted at Oliver’s ambition to be one of contemporary fashion’s great auteurs—not simply creating clothing, or creating clothing with a lifestyle,
but to be a maverick responsible for a universe of characters, ideas, and values. Upon its return, it stated its intention to be “The New Institution”—perhaps replacing the powerful entities every fashion brand strives to impress. The brand’s first drop, announced last July, included a T-shirt covered in the brand’s signature aggressive graphics, positioning Hood By Air as an “ELITE URBAN BRIGADE.” Their first ready-to-wear project launched in early March, with Naomi Campbell as the star of a campaign styled by Carlos Nazario and shot by Luis Alberto Rodriguez. Titled Prologue: Mother, it used the language of voguing, to Oliver what the ballet was to Coco Chane. But the collection also situated Campbell as a maternal deity to all the HBA children. The press release for Veteran includes Mary J. Blige, on the cover of GARAGE’s Fall 2020 issue, and Rihanna, on the January 2021 cover of Essence, as a part of their strategy, suggesting Oliver envisions a new kind of fashion world-building that encompasses editorial placements as well as advertising campaigns and seasonal clothing collections. In addition to all this, HBA is developing a sort of incubator called ANONYMOUS CLUB, to support young artists who will collaborate with the brand. Taken together, you can see the outlines of a fully self-sufficient Hood By Air universe, an alternate universe to the fashion status quo.
A press release notes that Veteran is a pre-collection, in advance of a show planned for this year. Pieces are already selling out. See you for the next act.
See more images from the Veteran lookbook below.
