The New Faces of Karen Walker

The undisputed queen of statement sunglasses, New Zealand-born designer Karen Walker is shining a spotlight on Kenyan craftspeople for her new collection, Visible. Not only do every pair of specs from the range come complete with a screen-printed pouch bearing a traditional Kenyan design, the artisans responsible for creating the pouches are also front and centre of the campaign, modelling for Walker’s lookbook and press material. Those pictured as the faces of Visible are the machinists, cutters, tailors, metal workers and Maasai artisans from urban and rural Kenya who collaborated on the United Nations’ ITC Ethical Fashion Initiative partnership project. If Karen Walker’s efforts are anything to go by, we foresee a bright future for meaningful artisan partnerships!