Call it how you wish, Russ Karablin is a street culture iconophile. One of a handful of streetwear’s original kingpins, the Russian artist is running bicoastal these days. He’s held down New York for decades, and his brand flagship boutique SSUR is still alive and well on Elizabeth St. But he’s also set up his studio here in downtown LA, where he paints and runs designs for graphic t-shirts and other collaborative projects. He’s still inspired and pushing the envelope after all these years, I am still as much of a SSUR fan today as I was a decade back. Russ and I were talking about that actually, how dedicated his global fanbase is. While most brands and designers pop off, come and go, and ride a rollercoaster of popularity, SSUR diehards are always down, no matter how many years pass.

by bobbyhundreds