COMMON LAW Apparel Capsule and Documentary

Before we start with personal introductions and our explanation of this project, we want to express just how impactful your support will be. This may seem like just an art project to the average viewer, but to us, it is the foundation of what we will build creative careers on. Your support gives us the chance to follow our dreams and share them with you in the process. We are blessed to even have the opportunity to ask for help. If you do choose to donate, please know we are forever grateful.

About The Artist: Luke

I’m Luke, an aspiring multi-media designer, currently focused on fashion and apparel. Brooklyn born and raised, I’ve been a lifelong creative and am now making my formal introduction to the design world. I’ve always wanted to share my work with more than those closest to me and I now have the opportunity to do it. I’ve tried my hand at corporate fashion design, but found that it lacked much of what I desired in the creative process. I wanted more control and more of a voice in whatever it is I choose to create. Following my realization came the first plans for this debut. While the content and timeline of the project are ambitious, aiming to finish it in just over 3 months, I have full confidence that it will be my best work yet. I want to share my work with anyone who shares my love for design, as well as those who are kind enough to support me in making it possible.

COMMON LAW is the first apparel collection I am making for my namesake brand, LAW. It will comprise four total looks, each including bottoms, a sweatshirt, a jacket, and a bag. It’s called COMMON LAW because all four looks are based on my perspective of what "common" apparel is. Each and every garment has been designed to compliment the others in their respective looks, as well as throughout the capsule. I’ve always had a love for cold weather, which is why the looks for this project are designed to fit into fall/winter seasonal apparel. This capsule is also my debut project as a designer and thus is built on what currently defines me, expressed through my interpretations of clothing.

Along with the apparel capsule, Pablo, my close friend of many years, will be shooting a documentary following the entire process. Soon after I first had the idea for COMMON LAW, I thought what better way to make this project come to life than with collaboration. He has chosen to take on just as much of a burden and responsibility as I have, given the amount of time he will be diligently working alongside me. Below, he better explains what his goal for this project is.

About The Artist: Pablo

I’m Pablo, a Brooklyn born and raised filmmaker. After high school I decided to go full throttle in pursuit of my dreams, and in May I finished my first ever film. Luke has been my closest friend for many years… we went to Elementary, Middle, and High School together. Luke approached me about making a short documentary for his first capsule a couple months back. I agreed, however I soon realized that this can’t be just about the capsule or the clothes… There is something much more important here to capture.

I wouldn’t use “Talent” as a way to describe what makes Luke special. Beyond his obvious talent in craftsmanship, Luke has a unique and almost unbelievable way about himself, his work, and his life. It’s something that tiptoes the border between extreme discipline, commitment, and utter obsession. Having spent so much time around him, I can confidently say that his mindset is something quite unlike anyone else his age, 19 years old… To be quite frank, it’s a mindset quite unlike anyone else, at any age. Words like “prodigy” can only be used alongside results that show the proof. However, the way Luke goes about himself and his work, I fully believe that this capsule will mark the beginnings of “the proof.” I fully believe that this is a documentary that must be made!! Because not often do we get the opportunity to witness, and explore the mind and the craft of someone like Luke, at a stage in his career like this: The absolute beginning… Luke is someone who will stop at nothing to reach the success that he has plotted out for himself, and I believe that one day, many years down the line, we will watch this documentary and finally realize what we’ve witnessed…

Here, either a master will be born, or a man, doomed by his own obsession will be instead. And either way, it’s a story that’s important to tell.

Your Support

Your support will give us both the opportunity to follow a dream and begin to share our work with a much broader audience. All of the funding donated for this project will go towards the materials and equipment needed to complete it. Below, all equipment and materials for both parts of the project are listed.

On the clothing side of things: 130+ yards of fabric, 25+ spools of thread, hardware (buttons, rivets, zippers, snaps, grommets, aglets), various trims (velcro, drawcord, chenille patches, paracord, beads, interior garment tags), pattern paper and pattern reference garments, t-shirt blanks and screen printing materials (screens, ink, photo emulsion kit).

And for the documentary: a Sennheiser MKH 416-P48U3 Shotgun microphone (the industry standard microphone for documentary filmmaking, recording audio on the move with the microphone attached to the camera rig), a Sony XLR-H1 XLR Handle Unit (An attachment for the Sony FX-30 Camera, allowing direct syncing of audio capture and the camera’s footage which makes setup for shooting and post production editing far simpler), and an extra camera battery (the microphone will drain battery much quicker, but with an extra external battery, one can always be charging while we shoot).

Anyone who supports us through a donation will receive the documentary link once it has been finished. And everyone who donates $100 or more will receive an exclusive hand printed t-shirt as part of the apparel collection.

In the case that the asking amount is exceeded, all extra money will go towards two possible things. The first is extra materials and equipment for this project. For example, with extra funds we can purchase extra fabric yardage or thread if unforeseen shortages occur, or another sim card for more documentary footage storage. These are only a few of the many possible additional supplies we could be using throughout. The other possible use for excess funds would be to help fund the next project that inevitably follows this one. Neither I nor Pablo intend on making this a one time deal. There will always be more creative ventures and more work to put out. We are definitely not expecting excess funding, but if it does happen, we want to be very transparent about what we will use it for. All that said, thank every one of you who chooses to support us.