Collab Alert: VANS x Van Gogh

It's not every day that an urban sneaker brand collaborates with one of the most influential painters of all time (let alone a painter who died nearly 130 year ago).

Vans has partnered up with the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam to launch a collection ofsneakers, shirts, bomber jackets, hats and backpacks, with each design inspired by a Van Gogh masterpiece.

Thecollection comprises16 pieces, ranging from footwear to apparel and brings four of Van Gogh's classic paintings, and a letter he wrote to his brother Theo, to life.

Van Gogh’s self-portait, recreated in trainer form...

Sunflowers...

Old Vineyard with Peasant Woman...

Skull...

Almond Blossom...

...there’s even a shoe that uses writing from one of his letters, including stamp and address, as a pattern.

It's an unexpected contrast from Vans' former collaborations with the likes of Nintendo, Pixar and Marvel. The designers at Vans went so far as to include little touches like custom footbed art that mimics Van Gogh’s brush strokes on the shoes and reproductions of the artist’s handwriting and brushstrokes for added details on the shirts.

And the shoes are for a good cause too; the Van Gogh Museum will be donating some of the profits from the collaboration to preserving Van Gogh’s legacy for future generations.