“More than just a graphic print; it’s an expression of who you are, where you’ve been, and what you love.” This is what UT is all about. According to UT Magazine, UT is a “celebration of pop culture from around the world” expressed further in graphic tees, sweaters, and hoodies. Being a purveyor of pop culture, you can just imagine the excitement that was boiling inside of us here at This is Hype Ph when we were given the privilege and honor to be invited by UNIQLO to their first-ever UT CON, 2022. The said event featured the latest lineup for their UT Collection for this Spring/Summer.
The event was held on May 13, 2022, at UNIQLO Megamall and was hosted by podcaster and content creator Justin Quirino and gamer and streamer Dexie Diaz. The event showcased a variety of themed graphic tee collections from UT which covers different content in pop culture and the arts.
Here are some of the graphic tees from The UNIQLO UT CON 2022 that we believe aren’t just hype-worthy but more importantly are worth the cop:
Magnum Photography Collective
Magnum Photos is an international photographic cooperative owned by its photographer-members. It was founded in Paris in 1947 by Robert Capa, David “Chim” Seymour, Henri Cartier-Bresson, George Rodger and William Vandivert, Rita Vandivert, and Maria Eisner.
These graphic tees that showcase artistic expression through photography highlight a variety of landscape photos. The creativity shown in each photo is beautifully laid out on UNIQLO’s very breathable and comfortable shirt as a means to express and boast this specific medium of art.
Check out the full Magnum Collection
Pokemon x magma
One of my personal favorites from the UNIQLO UT 2022 line is the Pokemon collection. It goes beyond my personal interest in Pokemon but these designs are taken to a whole new level due to the creative expression that it exhibits. It’s not just a plain graphic of our favorite Pokemon but the artistic duo of magma has transformed these characters by creating a very artistic and unique style for the way these shirts are designed.
Through the use of various objects, magma has created a very unique depiction of pokemon characters such as Pickachu, Magicarp, and Magnamite.
We personally love the OG Pikachu design with the cool and subtle contrasts of the bright yellow colors on top of a plain white background as well as the Magicarp tee that perfectly balances the shades of red that are splashed onto a dark blue background.
Museum of Modern Art (MOMA)
The UNIQLO UT Collection boasts graphic tees that touch on a variety of interests and for those who are art aficionados, here are some shirts that you might want to cop. UNIQLO continues to partner with designers who integrate and show off elements or concepts from great artists as they have dished out amazing shirts of paintings from the Louvre and Andy Warhol. UNIQLO now brings us some of the best works from MOMA in New York City for you to showcase and wear.
Some of the artists whose works are featured on UT’s new MOMA graphic tees include artworks by Russian artist Liubov Popova; Dutch painter Piet Mondrian, Monet’s Water Lilies; and one of the most popular being Vincent Van Gogh and his Starry Night masterpiece.
Our personal choices for this collection include Van Gogh’s Starry Night as well as the abstract paintings of Piet Mondrian and Liubov Popova, especially for those looking for a more minimalistic yet unique designed tee.
Check out the full MOMA UT Collection
Final Fantasy Collection
One of the biggest highlights however for this year’s UT Con is the huge collection of Final Fantasy graphic shirts that are now available at UNIQLO. In celebration of the video game’s 35th Anniversary, UNIQLO dishes out a variety of shirts for fans to choose from.
Final Fantasy has produced in itself a very unique but at the same time avid fanbase and solid followers and lovers of the game franchise. In the span of its 35 years of existence, there has been a total of 15 games that have been released with the 16th expected to drop soon. UNIQLO celebrates these amazing years through the 16 graphic tees that are now available in the store — each celebrating a game in the franchise. Fans can now show off their favorite Final Fantasy game as a part of their OOTD or the collector inside of us can opt to collect all sixteen shirts as well as a part of your Final Fantasy memorabilia.
Your personal stan or favorite game in the franchise may be the deciding factor for choosing which specific tee to cop. However in terms of the tees and designs that stood out for us here at This is Hype we personally loved II, VI, XI, XII, XIV, and XVI. We simply loved the retro vibes, unique colors, and contrast of the graphics from these specific tees which is why they personally stood out.
Check out the full Final Fantasy UT Collection
Wear your World.
This is the tagline of UT and these graphic tees barely touch the surface of the great designs, collaborations, and collections that UNIQLO offers. On top of those mentioned this upcoming Summer/Spring Collection will also feature designs from our favorite films, artworks, anime, music, and more such as Gundam, Doraemon, Lego, Mickey & Friends as well as some designer car graphic tees through The Brands Car collection and the UT Grand Prix design competition winner, Peanuts. “Wear your world” is truly not just another slogan or tagline but UNIQLO ensures that our own preferences and love for everything in pop culture shines for the world to see.
