Kim Jones Takes Dior Men's Pre-Fall 2022 'On the Road'
The eclectic designer returns to London and pays homage to his fascination with all things Jack Kerouac.
Not one to shy from the collaborator, Kim Jones has joined forces with acclaimed eccentrics such as Kaws, Daniel Arsham, Peter Doig, and Amoako Boafo to produce sought-after menswear. But today, upon returning to his hometown of London, Jones has chosen to debut his highly personal rare-book collection in conjunction with Dior Men’s Pre-Fall collection in a reverent pseudo collaboration with the great minds of Jack Kerouac, Virginia Wolff, Alan Ginsberg, Neal Cassady, and their Beat Generation contemporaries.
Speaking to WWD Jones said, “I have a lot of first editions of Jack Kerouac from his family and his friends, and it’s quite a big collection—about 100 books—so I thought I’d utilize that. I love the way that the Beat poets shifted the way of thinking.”
A slew of celebrities were in attendance, including Chase Hudson, Common, Jonathan Bailey, Lila Moss, and Mark Strong. The brand caught up with a number of them after the show to talk about the collection, set design, and Jones' creativity.
Working in conjunction with the literary executor of the Estate of Jack Kerouac and curated by Sammy Jay, head of the modern-literature department of Peter Harrington Rare Books, the show featured 66 books, 15 letters, and manuscripts, six vinyl records, Lou Reed’s original Velvet Underground lyric pages, and Ginsberg’s credit card.
According to WWD, Jones incorporated several book covers into the menswear. "When On the Road was written, it was very much the same time that Christian Dior was changing things,” the designer said. “So there’s this sort of synergy of it that I think is interesting: two different ways of approaching how you change the world.”'
Jack Kerouac would have turned 100 in March 2022, marking this collection a centennial celebration.
