Mr. Brainwash’s Chic Sunglass Hut Takeover

by Alexandra Ilyashov

Street art junkies and Ray-Ban loyalists alike had something to obsess over at last night’s cocktail bash for the latest installment of Sunglass Hut’s Artist Series at the shades purveyor’s newly-reopened Soho store on Broadway and Broome. Mr. Brainwash (aka MBW, aka Thierry Guetta), who decked out 250 pairs of Ray-Bans with his signature colorful splatters as part of the series, also did quite a number on the back portion of the store itself, which will function as a pop-up for the next four months.

“I started working a couple weeks ago, but the problem I have is that I always do things at the last minute. I worked for the past 24 hours without sleeping, because that’s  the way that I do things. I do things best under pressure!” Guetta explained. “I freak out for a minute, and then I always make it happen in the end. I drink a little coffee, I drink some [alcoholic] drinks, I just keep going.” He looked down at his paint-streaked hands and continued: “I When I get close to paint, I get possessive. I don’t have any limits. I can start really soft and light, and then I get mad and I start splashing…everything around me gets destroyed!  I keep all of the clothes, though, and I can’t wear them after a little while.”

The rationale for switching up his getups has more to do with being mistaken for a house painter than, say, feeling unkempt. “People stop me all the time asking, ‘Are you an artist?’ I say, ‘No, I’m just a painter,’ and they’ll come back and ask, ‘How much do you charge for a two-bedroom?’ It’s not just clothes, it’s my hands, too. When I don’t have paint on my hands, I feel unhappy.”

Even the eve’s snacks were decked out for the occasion: cake pops and chocolate-dipped Rice Krispie treats splattered with colorful icing. Chicsters sipped champagne and tried on the special, paint-bedecked specs before having photos snapped. The pop-up opens to the public today, so head downtown and check it out in all of its vibrant, paint-dripped glory.

 

You may also like

Leave a Comment