For W’s annual The Originals portfolio, we asked stars of film, fashion, art, music, and more to share their insights on staying true to themselves. See all of this year’s creator classes here.
Cherry World is a new lifestyle brand founded by a motley group of idealists. Francesca Burns is a stylist, consultant and publisher who has worked with the likes of Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott. Fergus Purcell, a commercial artist perhaps best known for designing the Palace Skateboards logo. And veteran photographer Glenn Luchford was recognized in the art and design world for his 1990s Prada campaigns.
Josh LeVine: We really just wanted to use Cherry World as a platform to collaborate with our friends. Having been in the fashion industry for several years at this point, it’s really just about wanting to do things our way and with people we think are the best.
Francesca Burns: It’s so exciting and exhilarating to work on this constant, dynamic exchange of ideas. It’s really, really fun. There are no better words.
How do you approach who is best at what?
Fergus Purcell: We’re a small group. So communication is very fluid, and so are our roles. Everyone’s ideas are valid and can be easily implemented. That rock is Josh’s production smarts and passion. As a commercial artist, my work is never just about ideas. What matters is how you turn good ideas into reality. That’s why Josh has an important role to play: an enabler.
Glenn Luchford: I don’t think I’ve ever said, “You do this and I’ll do that,” but in my experience I think that’s a good idea. Everyone instinctively knows what they’re doing and seems to be working at it. This is a hassle-free zone.
Models Brian, Anna and Elan.
The brand’s DNA combines the skater heritage of Josh and Glenn’s Los Angeles with the London street style of Francesca and Fergus. Plus, a healthy splash of global cannabis culture.
FB: And we wanted to create a brand that focused on the California lifestyle. We talked a lot about a young Rick Rubin through Snoop Doggy Dogg. Such energy, freedom, relaxation, free spirit. As a British person, I grew up seeing great parts of American culture. California skate culture, and South LA culture more generally, has always had this real charm. Being an outsider, from that perspective, can often be very optimistic about these ideas. It was so exciting when I was researching old skate and surf brands and digging deeper into this world. Because these are things I grew up seeing and loving. Obviously, Fergus comes from skate culture. So for him, California was a very important part of his identity. Glenn also started taking photos of skateboarders. He often talks about how that culture has real romance.
Does the name Cherry World have anything to do with choosing the scorpion as the logo?
JL: “Cherry” has so many different meanings. There is a connotation that a cherry red car or a bowl in a pipe is still “cherry”. And, obviously, “the world” makes it feel much bigger, perhaps even bigger than it is at this point. Subcultural aspects drive the brand identity. It’s liberating to just do what you want to do. How about pasting weed leaves on the button? How about a scorpion logo? I want to know Ferg’s answer about scorpions.
FP: It has something to do with how I feel when I watch Kung Fu movies in the afternoon, such as Shaolin Wooden or Drunken Master.
What are the core items of your debut collection?
GL: Good clothes, good atmosphere.
JL: Amazing and beautiful products made in LA: killer jeans, killer t-shirts, killer cashmere sweaters, killer woven shirts.
FP: “Let’s make things in America. It’s expensive, but it’s great.” – that was the position. The finished product is really good.
GL: Personally, I love the green stadium jacket. But denim is something we put a lot of energy into and I’m excited about it.
FB: Denim is really the root of it all. Personal photographs from Glenn’s archives are also featured throughout the collection.
GL: Josh and Ferg pitched some ideas and I liked them, so we considered them.
JL: There’s something called curls in the sweaters we make. It is named after Glenn’s childhood best friend. He took a photo of Carl when he was younger. We found it, digitized it, and completed it as a four-thread jacquard sweater. It looks like an old photo, but it’s actually a thin sweater.
GL: Carl was the first punk I ever met in the late 70s, so I had to tuck him in somewhere.
FB: Incorporating Glenn and Fergus’ work was very, very important.
JL: For the next season, Glenn took some of the first commercial photos he shot at Lollapalooza at the time, and Ferg printed them out and developed them for the shirts. Much of Ferg’s art is translated into clothing through graphics, screen prints, embroidery, and intarsia. We want to integrate these ideas in a really interesting way, rather than just screen printing a photo onto a t-shirt.
Is there anyone who creates original works exclusively for Cherry World?
FB: Glenn shot some of the lookbook and I shot some of it too. Glenn is British and has lived in America for a long time, but has strong roots in London. So I was casting friends and family, like Mark Lebon, for example. Not only is Mark a photographer himself, he is also the father of photographers Tyrone LeBon and Frank LeBon. He is also Glen’s old landlord. Glenn lived with Mark. Mark was also my boyfriend, Angelo’s college teacher. So we said, “Can you come and take some pictures?”
GL: I don’t think I gave it much thought. We just collected some buds and had a fun day. This seems to be the CW’s number one principle: Have fun.
Hair by Mikey Lorenzano. Make-up was done by art partner Sam Visser. Models: Anna Cordell, Elan Lee, Billy Luchford, Brian Maxwell, Jade Nilon. Casting Director: Rachel Chandler of Midland. Casting Producer: Ellie Gill; Produced by Alice Film. Executive Producer: Laura Lotti Studio Manager: Alexandra Zagozda; Makeup Assistant: Laura Dudley. Lighting Technician: Jack Webb; Photography Assistant: Alex de la Hidalga; Production Assistant: Cora Reiff; Styling Producer: Gabby Lambert Stylist Assistants: Natasha Devereux, Lindsey Eskind.
