April 23, 2025 |
16 years ago, in 2009, design duo Sofia Prantera and Fergus Purcell were struck with an idea that would soon grow into a purveyor of street style and counter‑culture loved by skaters, artists and fashion folk alike. The London‑based, Italian‑designed streetwear brand Aries was that idea, and the cult label soon cemented itself as a defining staple of London style, from Soho’s kerbside hang‑outs to the South Bank’s skate spot. Now, in 2025, luxury publisher Rizzoli is issuing the definitive visual chronicle of Aries in the form of a lush coffee‑table book.
At 288 Munken‑paper pages, the tome, dubbed Aries Arise Archive, collates every strand of the label’s DNA into one place. Italian fashion critic, journalist, writer and curator Angelo Flaccavento opens proceedings with a searching interview that Prantera deliberately positioned up front. “I love writing, but I find it daunting – especially as English is not my first language,” she admits, explaining that a third‑party voice felt more objective for a project that feels like “a compendium of my work but also of so many different people.” She continues, “We all felt it would be more interesting if the intro had a different point of view.” Because Flaccavento lives between Italy and the UK and interviewed Prantera at Aries’ birth (for an article that never came out), “he understands our references well and is a brilliant writer in both languages. We all felt he would write something unique, which he did and we all loved it immediately.”
Former i‑D creative director Jonny Lu shapes the visual flow, while Aries CEO Nicki Bidder edited the mountain of material into a tight narrative. That precision, the “decision of what to include and what to exclude was as critical as the content itself”, was essential, Prantera says: “I found myself deeply attached to every element, which made the process quite painful. If it had been left to me it would have become one of those work in progress projects that never see the light of day, or are published posthumously – LOL, thank you Nicki.” Even so, the pages hum with energy: familiar temple‑logo tees and “No Problemo” sweats sit beside zines, exhibition ephemera and an expansive roll‑call of collaborations – Clarks Wallabees splashed in marble dye, New Balance runners in pagan Day-Glo hues, rock crystal‑encrusted Crocs, velour Juicy Couture tracksuits and more. The work of photographers and friends including David Sims, Joshua Gordon and Mia Khalifa populate the spreads, reminding readers that Aries has always blurred the lines between fashion product and cultural project.
Putting the archive together proved “challenging but ultimately insightful,” says Prantera, who describes the process as a sort of tug‑of‑war between nostalgia and forward motion. “As a rule, I try to avoid revisiting my own work, as reflection on past efforts doesn’t fulfill me creatively. So I started to obsess about what had been left out – elements that, I’m sure could fill another twenty books – and this has become a significant source of anxiety. For me, the excitement of the creative process lies in the act of creating something new, rather than revisiting completed work, which made this aspect of the process somewhat alien. My primary concern remained the realisation that I might have overlooked acknowledging someone who contributed to the project in some capacity,” she says. That perception fuels her hope for the book: “I think a lot of people who have discovered Aries more recently might not be familiar with the work that has been produced in the past, we are often seen just as a clothing brand but we have produced a lot of art and culture during the later years and I am happy that it can be rediscovered and can help people see the brand under a new perspective.”
Aries Arise Archive is more than a logo‑bedecked lookbook. It’s a love letter to 16 years of DIY energy, Roman‑London iconography and the steadfast “No Problemo” attitude that keeps the brand moving – never merely reflecting, always writing the next chapter. Purchase your copy of Aries Arise Archive here.
Photography courtesy of Rizzoli.
