What does the famous food critic have to do with the turn-of-the-century gangster style? | Ajde!

Robert Makłowicz may need no introduction to our readers in Poland, but for those of you who may not be familiar with Polish gastronomy, he is one of the country’s most famous food critics and food influencers on YouTube. In addition to his expertise, his success is also due to his unique character, which in this case has also served as an inspiration. IVO’s designer Ivo Jankowiak has recently launched a new collection, for which the critic has been both muse and collaborator. As unexpected and strange as the creations are, they stole our hearts.

‘Ajde!’ reads the sign on the Makłowicz collection under the IVO label, a Croatian word favored by Robert Makłowicz (which means ‘come on’ and is also used in toasting) to sum up the Makłowicz merchandise, which includes cookbooks, hoodies, and T-shirts. Loyal fans can admire the now iconic dill dog and dolphin in unique designs, or even put on the collage featuring self-portraits. The T-shirts are inspired by the ‘rap tees’ of the nineties and twenties, depicting musical icons in a similar way.

Ivo Jankowiak’s T-shirt designs often refer to the style of the turn of the twenties. He hand-decorates, paints, or washes some of his products to achieve an authentic, ‘worn’ effect, and also creates his graphics in two ways: he later combines hand-drawn drawings with computer graphics to add more depth and detail to the final result. All designs, including the Makłowicz hoodies, are made using materials from Polish manufacturers, the products are hand-stitched in Polish sewing workshops, and a nearby print shop makes the prints.

Perhaps the essence of this exciting collaboration is bringing two different worlds together. You can wear it for admiration, nostalgia, or even irony. It is a dialogue between two distant generations, styles, and audiences, which boldly points out that neither art nor gastronomy knows no boundaries.

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• design
• Ivo Jankowiak
• Robert Makłowicz
• ajde
• collection
• graphics
• polish design
• ivodesignstore