Tommy Bogo didn’t plan on showing at New York Fashion Week back in February, but when the opportunity arose, he couldn’t turn it down.
“It was one of those things where I could say no, but what am I going to be doing otherwise?” he told Complex about Tombogo’s fall/winter 2021 runway show. “It was a ‘Let’s see what we can do” type of beat. After I said yes, I realized I only had a month and some change to put the whole thing together.”
On Tuesday, the Tombogo team released a short documentary that explored the brand’s preparation for its NYFW debut. The film, titled Lost My Way & Found Myself, follows Bogo & Co. during a whirlwind month in which they worked tirelessly to put their runway show and collection together amid the pandemic. We get an inside look at the casting process, the art and music selection, as well as a glimpse at the design work for the fall/winter 2021 offering, dubbed Lost & Found.
“I don’t know if I mentioned this in the documentary, but half of the collection I was producing for ‘Lost and Found’ didn’t get made in time,” Bogo admits. “So that made us pivot to sourcing more sustainable materials like deadstock fabrics to make these last-minute samples. About 15 unique pieces that were supposed to be featured in the show weren’t going to make it in time. That kind of speaks to the timeline. It was almost very calculated, but also very improvised at the same time. And I think that kind of somewhat reflects on my style at the moment. Although I like to do things very properly, I also have a free form style to what I do.”
Tombogo’s fall/winter 2021 collection is said to reflect Bogo’s experience during the past year, as it conceptualizes his journey from being “lost” to ultimately finding himself in a much more stable and grounded position once again. Designed entirely by the Bay Area native, Lost and Found presents elevated casual staples made from upcycled material sourced from the U.S. coasts. Key items are double-knee pants, utility vests, a puffer coat, a workwear jacket, pleated trousers, and a solid selection of knitwear that includes cardigans, crewnecks, and sweater vests.
The range also features work by emerging artist Leon Xu, who previously teamed up with Bogo on the “E-racism” T-shirt that dropped amid the Black Lives Matter protests.
“I saw parallels with his work and my Lost & Found collection,” Bogo said about Xu. “His work captures the feeling of hazy memories basically. When I was developing the collection and thinking back, this year really flew by, because we’re all just trapped inside. Then we blinked and now it’s 2021. His work really captured that so well. We have like a very explicit memory of what 2020 was, but at the same time, it all blended into one and flew by. Now we’re just trying to move past it.”
He continued: “There’s this rear view mirror hoodie in the collection, where there’s this hazy image of a car driving away from the city and you can see the city in the rear view mirror. That’s kind of a metaphor for what I just said. We’re kind of driving away from what we once knew, but it’s still kind of this hazy memory. So it went beyond his work because I just felt there were so many parallels to what I was trying to say in the collection. On top of that, we’re best friends so it was easy to work with him.”
By teaming up with his close friends, former collaborators, and fellow creatives, Bogo managed to successfully pull off his brand’s fall/winter 2021 runway show, which attracted some of the biggest Bay Area figures.
“There’s something about the Bay that creates a lot of innovation there. Everyone from Mac Dre to E-40 and Too Short, it’s just the way people carry themselves out there ...” Bogo said. “The Bay Area has this genuine energy to it where people don’t really create for clout or attention they kind of are just doing their own thing. Then they come to New York or LA to try and figure out how they can make something of it. The Bay has a lot of organic ideas and creativity. There’s just so much organic creativity, but it feels like there’s a glass ceiling when it comes to the Bay. You could be such a talented person, get stuck in the Bay, and no one will ever know who you are. But people here are OK with that. It’s not always about making it big. It’s about doing what feels good to you and the community.”
You can watch Lost My Way & Found Myself documentary up top. The film also includes appearances by J Balvin, Angus Cloud, Duckwrth, and Saba.
