The collaboration blends tailoring, artisanal knitwear, and personal histories through landscape-inspired design
Gabriela Hearst and Paul Smith have partnered on a limited-edition collection rooted in a shared appreciation for craftsmanship, tailoring, and personal storytelling. Launching May 20, the collaboration brings together the visual languages of both designers across a 14-piece men’s and womenswear capsule shaped by references to nature, family history, and artisanal production.
The collection originated from archival photographs taken by Paul Smith’s father in the British countryside during the 1950s and 1960s. One image captures a mountain landscape, another a flowing waterfall — visual motifs that became central to the collaboration’s narrative and design direction. For Hearst, whose work has long drawn from her upbringing on a ranch in Uruguay, the imagery aligned naturally with her ongoing exploration of nature and longevity in design.
Across the collection, tailoring is softened and disrupted through landscape-inspired printing and hand-crafted techniques. Silk satin trench coats and bias-cut slip dresses reinterpret shifting horizons through fluid silhouettes, while Italian-made wool suiting features all-over prints that introduce a more expressive dimension to traditional menswear construction.
Artisanal process remains central throughout. Cashmere crewnecks made from spaced-dyed Welfat yarn are hand-knit by Manos del Uruguay, the nonprofit cooperative supporting economic opportunities for women in rural communities that has become closely associated with Hearst’s sustainability-focused practice.
The collaboration also extends into accessories, where abstract and literal interpretations of natural landscapes appear on signature Gabriela Hearst handbag silhouettes including the Nina and Demi styles.
Photographed by Cathy Kasterine and styled by Camilla Nickerson, the campaign places the collection within a raw New York setting while drawing inspiration from the creative spirit surrounding a young Patti Smith. The imagery features a cast of artists, musicians, writers, and creatives, including Brooklyn musician Cameron Winter, reinforcing the project’s emphasis on cultural exchange and creative community.
The collaboration launches May 20 through Paul Smith boutiques and online channels, as well as selected Gabriela Hearst flagship stores and digital platforms.
