The L.A. Designer Using Streetwear Collabs As A Force For Good

Cool can be elusive, but there’s no doubt that Kyle Ng’s Brain Dead is one of the coolest streetwear brands around. Along with co-founder Ed Davis, Ng produces a dizzying array of graphic-print clothing, neon eyewear, and limited-edition sneakers. While the brand has gained legions of fans with its own merch, its co-branded products with the likes of The North Face, Reebok, and A.P.C. have caught the attention of a much wider audience. Ng moved from Berkeley to Los Angeles to pursue a career in film, but he eventually found his calling in the fashion industry. He founded the menswear brands Farm Tactics and AXS Folk Technology before taking a managerial position at Urban Outfitters. In 2014, he and Davis started Brain Dead, partnering with numerous artists and designers on initial products. One of its first projects was curating a gallery show for the New York boutique Nepenthes that explored ethnic bootleg culture’s place in what’s known as outsider art, or works produced by people without formal training or connections to the art world. To support the show, of course, Brain Dead put out a limited set of skateboard decks. Read more at Gear Patrol.