Osborne Wool

As part of his 2nd year in the Bachelor’s in Fashion Design at IFA Paris, Raphaël Gounord develops Osborne Wool, a men’s capsule collection built from a study of institutional wardrobe archives.

The project is based on the analysis of iconic pieces such as the penitentiary jacket, the penitentiary administration polo, and the peaked cap, which are studied and reinterpreted through trend research, creative development, and technical design work.

The collection is accompanied by an editorial about Thomas Mott Osborne (1859-1926), a reformer of the American prison system. In 1913, he voluntarily incarcerated himself under a false identity in Auburn prison to understand the conditions of detention. This experience led him to advocate for a more humane prison reform when he became the director of Sing Sing prison.

Through this project, Raphaël Gounord explores how historical references and pieces from masculine archives can inform a contemporary creative approach.