Miuccia Prada is not shy of using unconventional fabrics for her design and translating high-fashion concepts into practical outcomes. Think the signature black nylon backpacks and handbags that rose to popularity at the end of the last century. For the men’s Fall/Winter 2018 collection, Prada has collaborated with creative minds outside the fashion world and invited architects Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec, Konstantin Grcic, Herzog & de Meuron, and Rem Koolhaas to design a piece using the iconic black nylon fabric.

Renowned architect Rem Koolhaas has come up with a backpack that is to be worn at the front to make the items inside more accessible. It is rectangularly shaped with compartments because from Koolhaas’s observation at the airport, people carry orthogonal devices like laptops, chargers, books and toilet bags in a backpack. It was logically for him to create a backpack that store all these items nicely without extra ropes and straps.

Architects Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron claimed that “language has lost its power” and “text is perceived as design, pattern, or decoration”. In response, they have designed a print that consists of lines of text but together these texts do not convey any meaning at all. The print is used on the men’s t-shirt, shirt and jacket.

French designers Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec took the portfolio folder and playfully turned it into a black bag with eye-catching accents, while industrial designer Konstantin Grcic was inspired by fishing vests and created three pieces, with one of them combining the fishing vest with an apron.

The full collection can be viewed on Prada’s website.