We teamed up with Mr. Slowboy to create some new tailoring and limited-edition prints to commemorate the launch of his new book "Mr. Slowboy: Portraits of the Modern Gentleman".
One of the greatest benefits of running The Armoury is being able to meet some wonderful people along the way. Back in 2015, the store was featured in GQ China and I became friendly with a Chinese journalist named Patrick Rui who put our story together. He then introduced me to “his illustrator friend in London, Fei” and I consider it to be one of the most fortuitous introductions in my life.
In person, Fei is quiet. He has a calm and pleasant demeanour that I feel very content to be around. His illustrations brim with colour, life and humour, so much so that they almost seem incongruous with his apparent tranquility. I believe that his kind of work must come from a person of rich and complex character. Someone with endlessly observant eyes and a deep grounding in the arts. There are so many more layers to Fei than most people might discover.
I have been lucky enough to work with Fei on a number of occasions. Sometimes, he asks for my advice on business matters; other times I have commissioned work from him. One of the more complicated projects we did together was The Armoury’s lookbook in 2016, named ‘Work & Play’. Fei was just starting to gain recognition and I thought it would be great to make a lookbook that blended illustration and photography. It was an especially challenging project because Fei was based in London, unable to travel at the time, and the lookbook was being shot at Spring Place, a beautiful member’s club in Tribeca, New York. Ideally, Fei would have seen the locations and been involved with the setup of each shot. Nonetheless, he rose to the challenge.
I distinctly remember him and me sitting together in my flat in London the week after the shoot reviewing the images with the illustrations inserted. The initial result lacked impact but I struggled to understand why. Fei on the other hand was incisive in his explanation of what was missing and how to fix it. There were some issues with composition and colour that he could define so concisely that I could not help but be impressed.
We eventually managed to iron out the kinks with some clever editing and tweaks to the illustrations. When it comes to creative people, there is the unfortunate stereotype of a pie-in-the-sky artist who may have great ideas but falls short in execution. Fei is clearly not of that ilk. The lookbook was released soon after to critical acclaim and it even spawned some similar approaches from other menswear brands.
Of the many stories I could tell about my friend, I felt this vignette captures him best. Fei has a side of him that is as competent, pragmatic and tireless as you could ever want in a collaborator. Yet he is also sensitive, creative, humorous and understanding, all the qualities of a great friend. All in all, a man whose actions have always spoken louder than his words.
We worked with Fei to create a capsule collection of two sport coats and two chinos that can be paired as casual suits. Each garment includes a limited-edition postcard, featuring one of the pieces from the collection.
Drawing from years of experience honed through commissions for iconic brands around the world, Mr. Slowboy presents his "Portraits of the Modern Gentleman" in a variety of delightful illustrations that inspire with their sense of individuality and effortlessness.
