Sir Hussein Chalayan is what you could call your favorite designer’s favorite designer. A recipient of two British Designer of the Year awards and an MBE from the British Crown, Chalayan is perhaps one of fashion’s most influential yet underappreciated figures. Like many great designers before and after him, Chalayan garnered a reputation for channeling the power of fashion to tell stories, to share a philosophy. He had an experimental approach to his work. Before presenting his graduate collection from Central Saint Martins, he buried the entire line underground. He dug it back up before it hit the runway, covered in dirt, conveying the ritual of burial, the miracle of resurrection, and the degradation of urban society.

Thus, it is natural that such an approach would attract the likes of Jonny Johansson, co-founder and creative director of Acne Studios. Though the Swedish label would likely shy away from burying its garments in soil, Chalayan, a personal hero of Johansson’s, possesses a similar perspective on garment design to Acne. Construction by way of deconstruction, and tradition by way of subversion are the tenets that have defined Acne Studios since the ’90s, the decade when Chalayan was rewriting the rules of fashion. Now, Chalayan and Johansson have partnered up, creating a collaborative capsule meant to magnify the influence of both house and designer, and leaning heavily into storytelling.

The twelve-piece collection primarily pulls from three of Chalayan’s prevoius collections: Ventriloquy (2001), Medea (2002), and Manifest Destiny (2003). In addition to reshaping concepts and silhouettes from the 2000s, Johansson used fabrication as his means of “Acne-ifying” the pieces. The Swedish house builds largely out of denim, jersey, and leather, materials Johansson employed for this partnership as well.

Within the collection, patchwork and cut-and-sew jeans are shaped in Acne Studios’ signature ‘1996’ and ‘2009’ silhouettes. These jeans are accompanied by a denim shirt and vest, and a new jean cut: a twisted silhouette sporting a python print. A layered construction style, evoking much of Chalayan’s former work, is a repeated motif throughout the line, explored in much of the denim as well as T-shirts and vests.

“I particularly enjoyed working with Jonny on the denim side of the collection. The Acne Studios team came from a different generation, which allowed them to bring a fresh perspective to my existing language, which I found exciting,” Chalayan said in a press release. “Seeing the work interpreted made me realize that certain ideas can continue to resonate and evolve beyond their original context.”

Along with the collection, Acne Studios is releasing an original book titled “Reference: Hussein Chalayan.” Charlene Prempeh, a London-based curator, helmed the creative direction of the book. Serving a dual purpose, the book both honors Chalayan’s legacy and emphasizes his present impact, centering the term “Reference” in its title.

“I have always found Hussein’s work to be incredible – he has had a gigantic impact on fashion, and I wanted to bring that back,” Johansson said in a release. “It’s a very special feeling when you work with someone you look up to – all you can do is to let them be free to do what they do. What unites us is the idea that design and creativity should always be the priority.”