RED HOOK CRIT: London No. 2
Art Direction | Graphic Design | Custom Paint
Project Video, produced by Specialized Bicycles:
To celebrate the joy that is the Red Hook Crit, four of our designers will be personalizing a bike and gear to match each city. In this installment, Jon Takao, Footwear Designer at Specialized, tackles the London Red Hook Crit, bringing his own design twist that draws inspiration from risk, the eternal gamble, and fairytales.
What do you get when you take the U.K’s Royal family, Buckingham Palace, and the Crown Jewels,and mix them with Alice in Wonderland and a deck of cards? A collection (bike, kit, helmet, and shoes) that’s ready to deliver the royal treatment at RHC London No.2.
When Specialized Footwear Designer, Jon Takao,started thinking of the concept for his London themed Red Hook Crit project, he focused first on the city itself and the icons people would recognize. Through this process, he arrived quite naturally at the front gates of Buckingham Palace and the Royal family. Elements from the Crown Jewels Collection, plus the actual black and gold of the gates to the palace, worked their way into the design of the bike and shoes. The final jewel in the project’s crown came once Takao began considering what it means to race in RCH’s wild and cutthroat format.
“I started thinking about the race and that half the time, it’s such a gamble. Racing in general is a lot of luck, positioning, and then fake-it-till-you-make it,” says Takao. With the idea of “the great gamble” in his head, Takao took the next logical step and arrived at a Royal Flush to tie it back to the original idea. After choosing the King as the featured player, he began to research detailing for design elements, and in the process, he found a way to create the final piece in the collection—one that would round out the theme.
“The Queen’s guards in Alice in Wonderland are playing cards, so that become the inspiration for the kit.
With the black and gold of the bike (with reflective details that will come to vibrant life when hit by the flash of cameras), the intensity of the kit, and the regal audaciousness of the shoes, Takao has created a collection fit for Kings.
Words by Janeen McCrae for SEVENTY- FOUR, A Bi-Annual Publication By SPECIALIZED
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