we checked in with Ciesay and Soulz, Places+Faces grew from of a Tumblr-based gig-crashing photography passion-project into a meta-modern multi-hyphenate endeavor encompassing party promotion, magazine production, a spot of music publication and, oh yes, the dropping of “merch.”
That model has continued, with the span of Places+Faces parties broadening from London, New York, and Paris to Seoul, Kuala Lumpur, Tokyo, and Singapore. Their most recently planned party was in Moscow, but was canceled courtesy of COVID-19. Ciesay said they cannot yet plot another while health regulations remain necessarily stringent.
Meanwhile there is the collection, which has moved on too. As modeled here by Kasien Daley and Eva Apio, these clothes, said Ciesay, now merit more than the “merch” description he once happily embraced. “When we were calling it “merch” it was a shelter from the fact that we weren’t putting 100% into it. We were looking at brands who were printing on blank Gildan t-shirts and hoodies and thinking that’s what making clothes is.
Print remains strong—this drop via a Buddha hoodie inspired by the aesthetic of Ciesay’s UN worker mom, Priscilla, along with what looks like a contorted-face Misfits band shirt—but now the six-strong Places+Faces team has developed its own signature garments. These include the embroidered logo mohair cardigans that are Ciesay’s particular passion and cotton jersey pieces whose weight and cut has been refined over several seasons.
Although Soulz wasn’t not on the call, Ciesay says he remains very much co-captain of the operation: “He’s the Yoda of Places+Faces, and I’m the Han Solo. And that’s my one Star Wars reference for the day.” Together these two British-African Londoners are a force. First they built an international lifestyle, and second they built an international lifestyle brand—one description that Ciesay is happy to embrace. Happy seventh birthday, Places+Faces.
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placesplusfaces Proud of the boyz CIESAY007 & Soulz . From time ❤️🙏🏾
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