Even if you don't know her name, you'll probably recognize Henn Kim's illustrations. The artist's black and white designs have become a mainstay on the internet. Thanks to a new collaboration with Charles & Keith, Kim's drawings are now leaving the virtual realm and taking to the streets with a four-piece capsule collection.
Officially unveiled on September 5, the Charles & Keith x Henn Kim collaboration uses the illustrator's recurrent anatomical heart motif as its main connecting thread. Much like Kim's art, the capsule is also monochromatic, made mainly from black vegan leather only and featuring some sparse adornments in silver to round off the looks fully.
However, the restricted color palette is not the only element that Kim's 2D art and this wearable collection have in common. Titled "Heart Is Every Wear," Kim's collaboration with Charles & Keith is an open (and quippy) invitation for people everywhere to wear their heart on their sleeves — literally via the four pieces in the capsule and figuratively, as her art has been doing since she picked up her first black pen to draw when she was 17.
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Kim found refuge in art in her late teens after struggling with symptoms of insomnia and depression, which led to anxiety that left her unable to speak to other people for almost two full years. Through her drawings, she could evoke all the emotions she was going through but was unable to articulate and show them to the world. After uploading them onto the internet, her illustrations immediately resonated with many, which ultimately landed her the cover of Sally Rooney's bestselling novel Normal People. Now, she tells Teen Vogue, she is positive that art can convey the same weight as words — and sometimes even more.
"Using a black pen is enough to express my emotions," Kim tells Teen Vogue on the day of her collection launch. We are at Charles & Keith's Garosugil store in Seoul, and Kim is speaking via an interpreter. "It's like I'm writing a diary every day," she adds. Black was Kim's entryway into art, and she's held tight onto it ever since. She credits her trusty black pen for allowing her to find her signature style, which she has no plans to stray from. She doesn't envision a speck of color ever appearing in her work, and her face turns into a grimace at the mere mention of it. Black is her own kaleidoscope of color.
That's why working with Charles & Keith — a brand that excels in creating timeless, chic, and often monochromatic accessories available for everyone around the world — was a no-brainer for Kim. "I loved that Charles & Keith contacted me first because they understood my art, my style," Kim says. “The collection is a mixture of art and fashion, featuring a bold, unique, and very stylish look.”
The feeling is mutual. In a press release, Charles & Keith's design director Fredie Stevens said the brand "has always enjoyed collaborating with emerging creative talent across fields of art and design" and added that they had been long-time "personal admirers" of Kim's works. “It was particularly exciting for the team to work with Henn Kim in bringing a fresh take on one of her signature illustrations to life through this capsule – especially given the important message at its core on inspiring self-expression, which resonates with our own brand values.”
The reason why Kim chose the anatomical heart motif for the collection, and not many of the others in her repertoire like the bandaid, goes back to the communal feeling she often extols. The idea of finding something precious in something precarious and turning black into light.
"After the pandemic, everyone was very apprehensive of each other, very distant from each other, so I felt as if love, as if we, were growing apart from each other," Kim explains. “Everyone has a heart beating in the left side of their chest, so I wanted to create this collection and put the hearts in there to really remind everybody that we all have hearts. We can wear them on our products and see with the naked eye that love is everywhere. It's a reminder that love is all around us.”
Kim's wish of seeing the collection everywhere came true first with a campaign fronted by en vogue actress Han Sohee, whom you might recognize from popular Netflix K-dramas like Nevertheless and My Name. Han, who signed as a global brand ambassador for Charles & Keith earlier this year, is known to favor a darker aesthetic in her downtime, making the campaign a match made in sartorial heaven.
Coinciding with the collaboration launch as well as the unveiling of Charles & Keith's new fall collection, whose designs graced the catwalk at Seoul Fashion Week, the brand threw a little gathering to celebrate it all at the official opening of its new Gangnam flagship stores, where crowds gathered for hours to get a glimpse of brand ambassador Han Sohee, as well as (G)I-DLE leader Soyeon, as well as model and influencer Irene Kim, among many others. (The opening party did not only coincide with Seoul Fashion Week and the launch of both collections but also the Frieze art fair, so the brand also took a minute to spotlight the sculptural pieces created by South Korean artist Jeesun Park for the store.)
Seeing people, including renowned celebrities, flock to the store clad in her designs, Kim can't help but feel touched. "It's so heartwarming seeing people from all walks of life wearing the pieces," she says. "When I see them wearing the shoes or the bag and see how differently each person styles the pieces, it really warms my heart."
Hailing from Singapore, Charles & Keith already have a firm footing in Asia, but with initiatives like this one in Seoul, the brand is looking to expand its presence and "it" cool factor even further across the continent with a little bit of help from leading stars in the K-scene.
Prior to Kim's capsule, the brand also launched a collaboration with K-pop group ITZY, and, even outside of official partnerships, Charles & Keith have gotten the organic co-sign from other A-list celebs across the pond. Bridging the gap are K-pop juggernauts BLACKPINK, who wore the brand's shoes to perform at Coachella 2023.
Earlier this summer, Selena Gomez also made headlines for wearing a pair of loafers from the brand, which you can snag below. And, on the lead-up to the release of her long-awaited sophomore album GUTS, Olivia Rodrigo was also spotted wearing a pair of Dorothy-esque Mary Janes from the brand.
