Now one of the most recognisable icons in Contemporary Street-Wear, it is difficult to imagine that the ‘heart with eyes’ logo which was designed in 1999 was almost forgotten, during the process of collaboration between Comme des Garcons and its graphic artist designer Filip Pagowski.
The Warsaw born, New York based, Pagowski was seemingly influenced in part, by the infamous ‘I Love NY’ t-shirts, when he recalls the first draft of his logo being the one which was selected for use. The name of the Comme des Garcons sub-brand itself is uncannily familiar to the P.L.A.Y. (Participating in the Lives of America’s Youth) Nike community outreach programmes launched in inner city areas in the early 1990’s. It is clear that Comme des Garcons Play in all its dimensions sets out to make Comme des Garcons accessible; away from Rei Kawakubo’s often avant-garde collections.
Now featured in over 100 pieces of clothing, from t-shirts to swimwear – as part of a continuing collaboration with Speedo – the Comme des Garcons Play logo itself has manifested different sizes and colours over recent years. Collaborations with Converse and more recently Jack Purcell have added sneakers to the repertoire of pieces, whilst 2011 launched t-shirts featuring the drawings of cartoon characters designed by 'The Simpsons’ creator Matt Groening, point once more to Comme des Garcons Play’s artistic beginnings. The 2007 launched the Play fragrance for Comme des Garcons Parfums with its notes of orange and lime are underpinned with pepper and saffron, suggesting that underneath the youthful energy of the logo, lies the heart of a brand focussed on quality and luxury.