Applied Art Forms

Applied Art Forms is aimed at people who care about utilitarian design rather than logos, and reviewers have praised its minimalist, adaptable pieces. The brand prioritises longevity, sourcing durable and natural materials, so the value case rests on garments built to be kept rather than churned. Esquire even credited it with avoiding the usual pitfalls of celebrity-founded brands.

It was founded by Scottish musician Guy Berryman in October 2020, after three years of development. Berryman studied mechanical engineering and architecture at University College London before leaving to pursue music with Coldplay, a background he has described as adjacent to product design. He handles both design and creative direction, sharing the design role with Marcel Verheijen.

It's an Amsterdam-based label, stylised in all caps as A/A/F, that takes its cues from vintage, utilitarian, military and workwear clothing. Berryman reimagines functional garments from the 1940s to 1960s with an inclination for Japanese streetwear silhouettes, resulting in oversized, wide-bodied and loose-fitting pieces. Though originally tailored for the male body, the range is marketed as unisex.

Its signature is the C.H.L Boro Liner, a jacket woven in boro fabrics dating back to the 19th century, part of the artisanal Canal House Line built from antique textiles. Other core garments include the AM2-1 Modular Parka with detachable parts, the DM1-1 Japanese Cargo, and the WU1-4 Parachute Bag made from actual military parachutes.

Distribution started online, selling to friends, then expanded through retailers including Dover Street Market in cities such as Tokyo, Singapore and London. The brand has also worked with retail in Berlin, Los Angeles and Milan. Its first flagship store opened in Amsterdam in late 2025, described by Berryman as a cultural hub rather than just a shop.

The headquarters and main studio are in Amsterdam, Netherlands, chosen because of Berryman's contacts in the region; the company operates under Ratino Limited. The brand emphasises durable, natural materials and longevity, in keeping with its workwear and military roots, rather than chasing the seasonal fashion calendar.

No, and that's deliberate. Rather than following the traditional fashion calendar, it runs a permanent catalogue with occasional updates and additions. This suits its design philosophy of long-lasting, reissue-friendly garments, and it ran its first Paris Fashion Week showroom only in July 2025, several years after launch.

Berryman has repeatedly cited designers including Nigel Cabourn, Helmut Lang, Martin Margiela and Raf Simons among his references. That lineage of utilitarian, deconstructed and archive-minded design shows clearly in the brand's oversized, function-first silhouettes drawn from mid-century workwear and military pieces.

Yes. In 2023 it teamed up with audio brand Master & Dynamic on wireless headphones inspired by the Apollo missions. Berryman also worked with English designer Hannah Martin on the Vanitas jewellery series, drawing on the vanitas paintings that depict the fleeting nature of life through symbolism.

Effectively, yes. The pieces were originally tailored to the male body, but the brand ultimately switched its presentation to unisex. Given the oversized, wide-bodied cuts drawn from military and workwear sources, the fit tends to read relaxed and adaptable rather than gendered, which is part of the appeal.