Fashion

YOON Ahn of AMBUSH Talks Collaborating With Disney and UNIQLO UT

The designer reveals the inspiration behind AMBUSH x Disney x Uniqlo UT.

When Japanese brand AMBUSH announced a collaboration with Disney and UNIQLO UT back in January, the collection’s Minnie Mouse graphics and pastel colors captured our hearts. Peppered with adorable illustrations of Minnie’s signature bow and white-gloved hands, the range includes outerwear, T-shirts, pants and accessories, as well as tiny children’s clothes. YOON Ahn, co-founder of AMBUSH and creative director of Dior Homme Jewelry, talked to HYPEBAE about the inspiration behind her nostalgic AMBUSH x Disney x UNIQLO UT collection and revealed her favorite Disney movies.

The AMBUSH x Disney x UNIQLO UT collection is available now at UNIQLO’s website and at UNIQLO stores.

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What led you to focus on Minnie Mouse as opposed to another Disney character?
As a devoted UNIQLO customer and fan, it was a no brainer for me. When UNIQLO approached us on a collaboration with Disney, I knew right away that an iconic character like Minnie would be another perfect representation of this project.

What inspired the bold graphics of the collection?
Because [Minnie Mouse] is such an icon, it was challenging for me to come up with a solution in the beginning to not repeat what has been done before. So I put together graphics that were a bit more abstract and stripped it down. I created a theme of “LOVE” with her hand gestures.

The collection includes girl’s clothing as well. Was this your first time designing for kids?
Yes, but they are literally mini version of the adult ones.

How did you balance incorporating both AMBUSH and UNIQLO’s aesthetics in the collaboration?
The challenge was UNIQLO has a broader audience reach, so it was about the right balance — what could work for them, as well as our customers, without compromise. UNIQLO stands for elevated essential pieces, and they can seamlessly blend into everyone’s lives.

What are some of your favorite Disney movies?
The Little Mermaid, Tron and Fantasia are my favorites!

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