Galvin plays to his ‘bogman’ roots for his latest Dunnes fashion range

SEASONAL fashion catwalks eulogise lots of different style icons but the choice of Irish bogman may surprise some.

Kerry footballer turned fashion designer Paul Galvin found inspiration for ‘Bogman’ – his sixth collection for Dunnes Stores – right on his doorstep. In the Kingdom, Paul explored not only the peaty colour palette of the landscape, but also the bogholes which have informed his ‘bogwash’ denim jeans.

The campaign shots for the collection (right) were shot on the peat at Lullymore Heritage and Discovery Park in Rathangan, Co Kildare, and the first drop of the collection went on sale at Dunnes this week, with three more scheduled in March, April and May.

“Boglands have inspired many great works over the years, from film to music, architecture, literature and now menswear,” Paul said.

“The colour story for the collection is inspired by the natural colours of the bogs of north Kerry with turf brown, furze green, heather grey and fog white.”

Sleán

His new range includes peat briquette print shirts and T-shirts with one featuring the sleán, the bogman’s turf-cutting tool.

“I thought a sleán print would look cool on shirts plus it would act as narrative piece for the story,” Paul explained. “Bogman is part one of a trilogy of collections. It examines rurality through the boglands, referencing turf-cutting, bog architecture and loss of community.

“Autumn’s collection is called ‘Raglan’ and it explores urbanity, new communities and Dublin through the personal style and music of Luke Kelly and The Dubliners. The third part is called ‘Bedouin’ and explores travel and the nomadic lifestyle through the lens of the Bedouin nomads of north Africa and the Irish Traveller community.”

He acknowledges the “architectural genius” of Tom de Paor’s ‘N3’, built for the 2000 Venice Biennale using 40,000 peat briquettes.

Paul celebrates it in his half-zip tracksuit top with N3-printed pocket slogan.

Windcheaters are a progression of the bomber jacket trend, he says, and the camouflage print field jacket is ideal for long walks.

Paul Galvin models his ‘Henley’ contrast placket work shirt, €30, black jeans €40 on the bog while model Aubrey O’Mahony wears burgundy v neck with sports stripe, €35, grandfather collar check shirt, €35 and six panel silk flat cap, €35 from his...