AVERY DENNISON
Translating Cultural Stories Into Material Innovation
Across multiple projects, Art Comes First has worked with Avery Dennison to transform cultural narratives into physical detail — from record-inspired packaging and experimental garment finishes to bespoke patches, trims and embellishments.The relationship demonstrates how creative direction and technical innovation can work together, turning ideas, references and storytelling into products people can see, touch and experience.
Photography:
Ted Mendez
Overview
A Creative & Technical Partnership Built Through Detail
Art Comes First' relationship with Avery Dennison developed through a shared interest in experimentation, craftsmanship and the ability of small details to carry larger stories.
Beginning with projects in 2019, Avery Dennison became a technical partner capable of helping ACF translate unconventional creative concepts into physical applications — supporting packaging, labelling, finishes and product development.
For the 2019 Fred Perry × Art Comes First Jamaica collection, ACF transformed its fascination with Jamaican record culture into specially designed vinyl-style record sleeves used as packaging for the collection. Avery Dennison supported the project by producing the vibrant packaging that allowed the concept to move from artwork into a commercially realised object.
That same year, Avery Dennison also supported ACF's Electric Church collection, which explored unconventional finishes, heat transfer, outside labelling and material experimentation.
Years later, the relationship evolved again through ACF's Black Ivy Aesthetics collection, where Avery Dennison worked closely with the team to develop bespoke chenille, woven and embroidered applications that translated the collection's cultural story into physical product detail.
Selected Highlights
• Recurring creative and technical partnership across multiple ACF projects
• Produced record-inspired packaging for the 2019 Fred Perry × Art Comes First Jamaica collaboration
• Supported material experimentation and product detailing for ACF's AW19 Electric Church collection
• Developed bespoke patches and trims for the Black Ivy Aesthetics collection
• More than 100 hours of collaborative design development on Black Ivy
• 13 bespoke patches developed using multiple finishing techniques
• Approximately three-week production turnaround from design development to finished components
• Partnership spanning packaging, labelling, embellishment and technical product development
PARTNER
Avery Dennison
STATUS
Recurring Creative & Technical Partnership
DURATION
2019–Present
INDUSTRY
Materials · Fashion · Apparel Branding · Product Innovation
LOCATION
London · New York · International
SERVICES / ACF ROLE
Creative Direction · Product Development · Packaging Design · Graphic Design · Cultural Research · Material Direction · Embellishment Design · Brand Storytelling
THE OPPORTUNITY
Turning Ideas Into Objects
Art Comes First frequently begins with cultural research rather than conventional product briefs.
Music, archives, migration, tailoring, community and historical references become starting points for collections — but those ideas only become meaningful product when they can be translated into materials, finishes and details with the same level of intention.
The opportunity with Avery Dennison was to bridge that gap.
Rather than treating labels, packaging, patches and trims as elements added at the end of the design process, ACF approached them as part of the storytelling itself.
A record sleeve could become packaging.
A label could become an external design feature.
A varsity patch could become a piece of cultural memory.
Through Avery Dennison's technical capabilities, these concepts could be developed, tested and produced while preserving the original creative idea.
PARTNERSHIP JOURNEY
Creative Concept
ACF begins with culture, research and narrative.
↓
Graphic Language
Ideas are translated into artwork, typography, symbols and visual applications.
↓
Material Translation
Avery Dennison helps explore how those ideas can exist physically through packaging, labels, trims, patches and embellishment.
↓
Development
Concepts move through sampling, material selection and technical refinement.
↓
Production
Creative ideas become commercially viable physical components.
↓
Product Storytelling
The finished details become part of the cultural narrative of the collection rather than simply decoration.
SCOPE OF COLLABORATION
Creative Direction
Developing the cultural and visual concepts behind each application.
✓ Cultural research
✓ Concept development
✓ Graphic direction
✓ Artwork development
✓ Product storytelling
✓ Material references
Packaging & Brand Expression
Turning packaging and labelling into part of the creative experience.
✓ Record-sleeve packaging
✓ Graphic applications
✓ External labelling concepts
✓ Custom branding
✓ Collection storytelling
Product & Material Development
Translating creative concepts into physical garment detail.
✓ Custom patches
✓ Chenille applications
✓ Embroidery
✓ Woven applications
✓ Trims
✓ Heat-transfer experimentation
✓ Material and finish development
Technical Collaboration
Working between creative vision and production capability.
✓ Sampling
✓ Material testing
✓ Prototype development
✓ Technical refinement
✓ Production execution
✓ Commercial application
SELECTED COLLABORATIONS
2019 — FRED PERRY × ART COMES FIRST
Record Culture Becomes Packaging
Context
For Spring/Summer 2019, Art Comes First developed a Fred Perry collection inspired by Jamaica, Rudeboy culture and ACF's longstanding fascination with ska, reggae and rocksteady record sleeves.
Rather than allowing that musical reference to exist only in the campaign or clothing, ACF wanted the experience to extend into how the product itself was presented.
Approach
Art Comes First created a series of record-inspired artworks that transformed the collection's polo packaging into objects resembling vinyl record sleeves.
The graphics drew from the colour, typography and visual energy of Jamaican record culture, making the packaging an extension of the collection's story.
Avery Dennison worked with ACF to produce the vibrant packaging, translating the artwork into finished sleeves capable of accompanying the commercially released Fred Perry collection.
ACF Role
Creative Direction · Packaging Concept · Graphic Design · Cultural Research · Art Direction
Avery Dennison Role
Technical Development · Packaging Production · Material Execution
Outcome
The project demonstrated how packaging could move beyond function and become part of the creative narrative.
Instead of simply protecting the garment, the sleeve connected product, music and visual culture — allowing the customer to encounter the collection almost as they might discover a record.
2019 — ELECTRIC CHURCH
Experimenting With Surface & Detail
Context
For Autumn/Winter 2019, ACF's Electric Church collection explored the meeting point between tailoring, biker culture, music, travel and material experimentation.
The collection moved beyond conventional garment finishing through lamination, waxing, flocking, heat transfer, external labelling and other surface treatments.
Approach
Avery Dennison was among the technical partners supporting the development of the collection, helping ACF explore how graphic identity and material experimentation could be incorporated directly into garments.
Rather than hiding branding and construction details, Electric Church frequently brought them to the surface, making labels, finishes and applications visible parts of the aesthetic.
ACF Role
Creative Direction · Collection Design · Textile Direction · Graphic Design · Product Development
Outcome
The project expanded the ACF × Avery Dennison relationship beyond packaging and into garment development — establishing a wider dialogue around materials, applications and product detail.
Experimenting With Surface & Detail
Context
For Autumn/Winter 2019, ACF's Electric Church collection explored the meeting point between tailoring, biker culture, music, travel and material experimentation.
The collection moved beyond conventional garment finishing through lamination, waxing, flocking, heat transfer, external labelling and other surface treatments.
Approach
Avery Dennison was among the technical partners supporting the development of the collection, helping ACF explore how graphic identity and material experimentation could be incorporated directly into garments.
Rather than hiding branding and construction details, Electric Church frequently brought them to the surface, making labels, finishes and applications visible parts of the aesthetic.
ACF Role
Creative Direction · Collection Design · Textile Direction · Graphic Design · Product Development
Outcome
The project expanded the ACF × Avery Dennison relationship beyond packaging and into garment development — establishing a wider dialogue around materials, applications and product detail.
2025 — BLACK IVY AESTHETICS
Heritage Reimagined Through Craft
Context
For Black Ivy Aesthetics, Art Comes First explored the history of Black creatives who transformed the codes of Ivy League style into expressions of independence, pride and cultural identity.
Drawing from figures such as Miles Davis and James Baldwin, the collection brought together Savile Row tailoring, varsity clothing, corporate stripes, workwear and American collegiate references.
The challenge was ensuring that the smallest product details carried the same historical and cultural meaning as the garments themselves.
Approach
Art Comes First worked side-by-side with Avery Dennison to develop a family of bespoke embellishments for the collection.
Custom chenille embroidery translated the language of traditional varsity patches into ACF's own visual vocabulary, while additional embroidered and woven applications were developed across jackets, ties and other pieces.
Rather than reproducing vintage collegiate graphics literally, the partnership used traditional techniques as a foundation for contemporary storytelling.
ACF Role
Creative Direction · Collection Design · Cultural Research · Graphic Design · Patch Design · Product Development
Avery Dennison Role
Material Innovation · Technical Development · Chenille Production · Embroidery · Patch & Trim Manufacturing
Development
100+ HOURS
of collaborative design development
13 BESPOKE PATCHES
created across multiple finishing techniques
3 WEEKS
from development into finished production
Outcome
The finished details became an integral part of the Black Ivy collection.
Varsity patches were no longer simply decorative additions; they became visual carriers of the collection's history, helping connect Black Ivy's mid-century cultural references with contemporary ACF design.
The collaboration demonstrated how heritage craft, technical manufacturing and cultural storytelling can operate together within a commercially produced fashion collection.
2025/26 — ACF × ANDY WAHLOO 54
Football, Art & Moroccan Culture
Context
During the Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco, Art Comes First developed a limited-edition football jersey with Andy Wahloo by artist Hassan Hajjaj, bringing together fashion, contemporary art, football culture and Moroccan identity.
The project created a three-way creative and technical collaboration between Art Comes First, Hassan Hajjaj / Andy Wahloo and Avery Dennison.
Approach
Art Comes First reinterpreted the classic football jersey through its own visual language, developing an all-over jacquard pattern from the ACF insignia alongside ceremonial crest patches referencing heritage, ritual and identity.
At the centre of the jersey, a photographic portrait by Hassan Hajjaj introduced his distinctive visual language directly into the garment, connecting contemporary Moroccan portraiture with football culture and fashion.
The back carried “Andy Wahloo 54,” referencing Hassan Hajjaj's Marrakech creative space and the wider cultural world surrounding the collaboration.
Avery Dennison supported the production and technical execution of the jersey, helping translate the creative concept into a finished limited-edition product.
ACF Role
Creative Direction · Product Design · Cultural Research · Graphic Direction · Collaboration Development · Product Storytelling
Hassan Hajjaj / Andy Wahloo Role
Artistic Collaboration · Photography · Cultural Direction · Andy Wahloo Creative Identity
Avery Dennison Role
Technical Development · Material Execution · Production
Outcome
The jersey debuted in Marrakech during the Africa Cup of Nations, where the initial release of 54 pieces sold out, before the project was expanded and later presented during the 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair.
The collaboration demonstrated the evolution of ACF's relationship with Avery Dennison beyond packaging, labelling and embellishment into the technical realisation of a complete cultural product.
Bringing together fashion, contemporary art, football and African creative culture, the project showed how specialist production could support a multi-disciplinary collaboration without losing the identity of any of the partners.
CREATIVE & TECHNICAL IMPACT
The partnership demonstrates the value of bringing creative direction and technical expertise together early in the development process.
Rather than designing a collection first and treating trims or packaging as an afterthought, ACF and Avery Dennison have worked collaboratively to make these elements part of the idea from the beginning.
The result has ranged from record-inspired packaging and experimental garment applications to highly developed bespoke embellishment.
On Black Ivy Aesthetics alone, more than 100 hours of collaborative design resulted in 13 bespoke patches produced within an approximately three-week development and production period.
Beyond the numbers, the relationship demonstrates an ability to turn complex cultural references into commercially executable product details without losing the story that inspired them.
PARTNER RECOGNITION
AVERY DENNISON
Art Comes First × Avery Dennison: Weaving Heritage Into Modern Fashion
Avery Dennison documented the Black Ivy Aesthetics partnership through an official case study examining the creative and technical development behind the collection.
The feature highlights the collaboration between ACF's cultural storytelling and Avery Dennison's materials and manufacturing expertise, including the development of custom chenille, embroidered and woven applications.
It also records the project's measurable development process: more than 100 collaborative design hours, 13 bespoke patches and a three-week production turnaround.
DETAIL AS STORYTELLING
The Avery Dennison partnership demonstrates a recurring principle within Art Comes First:
the smallest detail can carry the largest story.
Packaging, patches, labels and trims are often treated as secondary elements of fashion.
ACF approaches them differently.
When developed with intention, these elements can communicate history, music, place and identity just as powerfully as the silhouette of a garment.
Across the relationship with Avery Dennison, technical production became a creative tool — enabling cultural research to move from concept and artwork into something physical.
EMBELEX × ART COMES FIRST
Avery Dennison also presented the collaboration through its international corporate channels, highlighting how both teams worked side-by-side to transform the history and attitude of Black Ivy style into contemporary physical details.
The project was positioned as an example of how heritage, brand expression, advanced manufacturing and bespoke embellishment can operate together.
PHILOSOPHY
Technology becomes most valuable when it does not overpower the idea it is helping to create.
For Art Comes First, innovation is not simply about using a new process or material.
It is about finding the right process for the story.
The relationship with Avery Dennison demonstrates how industrial capability and cultural intelligence can meet in the middle — combining ACF's research, design and storytelling with the technical knowledge required to transform an idea into a finished object.
LEGACY
What began through packaging and garment experimentation developed into a recurring relationship between creative vision and technical execution.
From Jamaican record culture and Fred Perry packaging to Electric Church and the embroidered language of Black Ivy Aesthetics, each project has used a different technical solution while maintaining the same principle:
detail is never merely decoration when it carries meaning.
The partnership demonstrates Art Comes First' ability not only to imagine culturally relevant products, but to work collaboratively with global manufacturing and material partners to bring those ideas into physical reality.
Explore More Project
LAD/
OZWALD BOATENG
FRED PERRY
