Carhartt WIP SS23 Campaign by Finnegan Travers

Put on your headphones. While brand campaigns are typically judged by their imagery, it is the rich soundscape that defines Carhartt WIP’s latest.

The velcro-like fuzz of the radio being tuned, waves slapping up against the coastal shore; the aquatic pressure of being underwater and the rattle of an underground train. Even the satisfying dissonance of urethane wheels on concrete. In the space of two minutes, Travers attempts to almost overwhelm one’s ears, offering a heightened sensory experience, as he traces three distinct characters through a day in their lives.

Laden with color and detail, the viewer is offered only fragments to try and piece together some semblance of narrative. There is the coast of Devon juxtaposed with the bustle of London, and there are nods to the brand’s roots in music as well as skateboarding, with the inclusion of Carhartt WIP team rider Matlok Bennett-Jones.

The accompanying still images are equally as vivid. Black and white photographs, heavy on shadow and contrast, depict the spray of the ocean, wide city streets, and unkempt bedrooms. Color images meanwhile pop with primary colors; the focus not on the clothes themselves but the campaign’s three protagonists, each possessed with a deep, searching look that belies their youthfulness.

Finnegan Travers is a London-based photographer and visual artist, known for his striking yet delicate imagery, and ability to imbue images of the everyday with a tactile, textural quality.