Anaheim Factory Collection revives the original creative essence of Vans

Looking to the past to relive the present. That’s the concept guiding Vans’ new Anaheim Factory collection: an ode to the brand’s origins and its creative essence. The californian house thus uses nostalgia to reissue a series of archival silhouettes with which it debuted in its first factory in Anaheim, modernizing its original aesthetic philosophy and artistic energy.

For this spring, Vans picks up a new bloom from its timeless roots to present a timeless collection revolving around the Authentic 44 DX. These were the brand’s first vans, co-designed by brothers Paul and Jim Van Doren, and their partners Gordon Lee and Serge Delia in 1966.

The first Off the Wall styles were sold directly to the public from the Van Doren rubber factory in Anaheim (California), where the shoes were designed and sculpted by hand in exclusive units. Each of the models consisted of a specific mold, and the colors selected for the canvas became expressions of freedom for times of amateur experimentation. The store at the front of the factory displayed all those creative silhouettes that would advance the DIY era.

THE NEW DROP OF ANAHEIM FACTORY COLLECTION

The Anaheim Factory collections become a fusion of the design and construction of classic Vans models. Each season presents new packs with silhouettes that follow the original molds, premium construction, and colorways used in the early days of the Californian brand.

The new footwear installment of the Anaheim Factory saga celebrates the brand’s heritage through a capsule that follows the path initiated by the first heritage collection of 2016. That was the year the VF Corporation house celebrated five decades in fashion and wanted to celebrate its iconic legacy.

Diving into the brand’s archives and history, Vans now places in the global showcase a series of color block silhouettes with graphic brushstrokes and/or visual codes from its original vocabulary. The essence of the past has been brought together in a new retro and handcrafted format that coexists with the technology of the future.

DECIPHERING THE SILHOUETTES

In the new proposal for spring-summer 2021, elements faithful to the initial era are reinterpreted for those who value aesthetic details and functionality. From the illustrations of the classic Vans archive to the nomenclatures by silhouettes and their numerical identities: a system that was used back then to catalog the vans according to their type of mold. Each design, therefore, includes the OG style/model number.

 

If we zoom in on the midsole, we can see precisely this synergy between the naïve development and the van’s customization heritage, when the Californian boys/girls painted their shoes as a sign of identity. In the sneakers collide, in this way, fashion and visual arts through a series of original prints reissued from the 70s and 80s.

Other details that underline the difference of the updated Authentic are the foxing tape in a brighter version, the cotton laces, and the thickness of the lining. OrthoLite® footbeds finish the look with added comfort.

In the men’s line —the yellow and cream-colored ones— the side soles pay tribute to action sports with retro graphics. Nostalgic three-color illustrations depict skiing and surfing scenes that accentuate the sporty design.

In parallel, the womenswear section includes two versions: emerald green and Klein blue. In sync with the men’s / unisex silhouettes, they are characterized by colorful prints in the form of hearts and rainbows that reflect the basis of the color therapy. Fantasy is served.

The new Anaheim Factory Collection is now available on vans.es and in physical stores.