It’s easy to get Hello Kitty fatigue, since she’s been available on every imaginable product for a long time now. (And that’s a lot of pink.) But I’ve been happy to see Sanrio let Kitty out to play with various artists over the years, and the results often make the character come to life in a new way.
Like my new favorite shirt!
The design is by the Japanese duo marini*monteany, and the shirt is part of a new Hello Kitty artist series from UNIQLO. (Unfortunately only available in NYC in the US.)
When an artist takes on Kitty and recontextualizes her in their world, I fall in love with her all over again, and often with the artist for the first time. Another example that I’m crazy about is the Wish Come True x Hello Kitty series of figures and accessories, from Miami-based art/design team Friends With You.
(It’s not a surprise that all of these are sold out from the Friends With You website, but I bet they can be hunted down elsewhere.)
It makes me happy that these artists help keep Hello Kitty fresh and iconic at the same time. She still inspires me, and so do these playful and imaginative artists!
Since you are such a fan you should come down to sunny Florida and visit Epcot. Hello Kitty is all over the Japan pavilion. Cant help but be surrounded by cuteness there. Pokemon, Domo, Ponyo and Hello Kitty!
You should bring that next time you come to NH. I bet I can hide it in the laundry for myself….
I don’t know what it is about Hello Kitty but I’m with you! I find it all practically irresistible! The shirt is fantastico! Keep sharing!!!
love the shirt! I had fun testing out my french skills to translate the saying :) I love hello kitty in any re-incarnation.
I have loved HELLO KITTY since I was 6. My great aunt used to bring me stuff back to Canada on her trips to Japan. Everyone in my family and all of my friends said I’d get sick of her…..but when I turned 18 and was still living at home and going to University, I painted all of my walls Sanrio Hot pink and bright yellow in diagonal stripes. Had a HK bedspread, carpet, wall fixtures and….wait for it…..configured my computer into a HK head and customized the whole thing in glitter. I was a fine arts and Biology major…so my mom (agian) said I’d grow out of it.
I’m 27 and married…to the man who actually HELPED paint those diagonal stripe walls back home. We visited my mom a few months back and FINALLY repainted the walls in crappy standard white. She was actually kinda sad to see HK go.
I’ll NEVER lose my love for HK and as I write this in my office (I’m a medical illustrator)….I’m surrounded by all things Hello Kitty.
Thanks for the smile Anna!