After a full year of planning, O*GE’s hard curatorial work at the Castro street art project in Jaffa has finally paid off. In one of the most surprising marriages of fashion, design and urban art we’ve seen to date, the Israeli-based clothing company invited more than a dozen internationally-acclaimed street artists to work with their fashion designers to create a fascinating summer collection.
But there’s more. In order to provide a showcase of both the street art and clothing, O*GE designed a pop-up shop made of shipping containers, which is currently on show at Hangar 2 at Jaffa Port just south of Tel Aviv, and the graffiti artists are manifesting scaled versions of their work that has been immortalized on t-shirts sold at Castro stores around the world.
While we make no claims that Castro clothing is particularly green, O*GE has a knack for curating projects with a minimalist touch without sacrificing a drop of flair. In this case, the project called for something more industrial chic than their recently-completed Haifa flower fair, given that it is situated in a port hangar.
Illuminated recycled shipping containers positioned on top of one another are used as display cases for both the artists and Castro clothing. A coat of bright-red paint livens up the giant steel structures, which might have otherwise gone to waste if O*GE hadn’t transformed them into a temporary pop-up shop.
Outside of the building, the artists are working the walls. Among those invited to participate in the second Castro Street Art project are Alexandros Vasmoulakis and Paris Koutsikos; the image below depicts a small sample of their exceptional urban art.
If you’re in Israel, rush down to the port and catch a glimpse of the project if you can. Today is the last day it will be on display, though the resulting clothing line should be available all summer.
all images via O*GE Facebook Page
Author: Tafline Laylin
As a tour leader who led “eco-friendly” camping trips throughout North America, Tafline soon realized that she was instead leaving behind a trail of gas fumes, plastic bottles and Pringles. In fact, wherever she traveled – whether it was Viet Nam or South Africa or England – it became clear how inefficiently the mandate to re-think our consumer culture is reaching the general public. Born in Iran, raised in South Africa and the United States, she currently splits her time between Africa and the Middle East. Tafline can be reached at tafline (at) greenprophet (dot) com.
