Crooks & Castles Lewds Collection (photo courtesy of Crooks & Castles)

Crooks & Castles Lewds Collection (photo courtesy of Crooks & Castles)

CROOKS & CASTLES

After Friend’s Shocking Death, A Collection

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FULL HOUSE: The Lewds Collection took a bow with a party at Known Gallery. (photo by Andrew Asch)

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THE CREW: At debut event for Lewds Collection, from left, Dennis Calvero, co-founder of Crooks & Castles, CJ “Siege” Natalio, son of namesake of Lewds Collection, and Futura. Futura collaborated with Crooks & Castles on the capsule collection. (photo by Andrew Asch)

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THE DETAILS: A centerpiece for the Lewds Collection debut was a Ferrari FF detailed with the collection’s graphics. (photo by Andrew Asch)

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Christopher “Lewds” Natalio (photo courtesy of Crooks & Castles)

The Spring ’14 looks of Crooks & Castles is in stores, the streetwear brand’s Spring ’15 styles will be previewed at the upcoming Agenda trade show in Long Beach, Calif., but the Crooks label made one of its most heartfelt statements on June 19.

It is the Lewds Collection. It’s the Los Angeles streetwear brand’s tribute to Christopher “Lewds” Natalio, the Crooks’ former marketing director. When he died suddenly in 2012, said to be of a heart attack, it sent shockwaves through the hip hop and street wear communities.

Hip Hop Star Drake devoted a song to Lewds’ memory during a 2012 concert. The brand soon honored his memory with hang tags featured the words “RIP Lewds.” But it wasn’t enough, said Dennis Calvero, Crooks’ co-founder and creative director. “Lewds was the Robin to my Batman. He was my greatest supporter. He was my best friend for 20 years… We wanted to dedicate a collection for him,” he said.

The collection took a bow with an event that Lewds would have loved. It was a party and exhibition at the Known Gallery on Los Angeles’ Fairfax Avenue, a few storefronts down from the Crooks flagship store at 455 N. Fairfax. Hip hop innovator Russell Simmons appeared at the event. The party’s exhibit were pieces from the Lewds line, and for a little automative bling, a Ferrari FF hatchback luxury car detailed with graphics from the new collection.

To give the Lewds collection an added edge, the Crooks team called on Futura, the pioneering graffiti artist who gained fame with doing murals on New York City subway cars. Futura also collaborated with iconic rock band The Clash, providing art for the band’s 1982 album “Combat Rock” as well as a rap on their song “Overpowered by Funk.” A book on his art is tentatively scheduled to be published in 2015.

In a tragic twist, Futura was present at a gathering at Lewds' house the day he died. Futura and his son, a photographer who goes by the name 13th Witness had been friendly with Lewds and his fellow Crooks for some time.

The artist sent the Crooks label some original art for the collaboration. For a signature look, the Crooks design team decided on a drawing of several intersecting circles, which looks like an atom diagram spraypainted on a graffiti mural. The capsule collection also presents Futura’s iconography and lettering style through the brand’s sensibility. The collection’s looks include T-shirts, fleece, snapback caps, bucket hats, baseball jerseys,compression pants among other styles, and they will be retailed exclusively at the Crooks Los Angeles flagship. Retail price points will range from $40 to $110.

The collection is manufactured entirely in the US, said Emil Soriano, Crooks’ apparel design director. The capsule will have a lot to say, he said. “We’re bridging that intersection of who Futura is, and who we are as a brand,” Soriano said. It will also tell the story of Lewds, Crooks’ great friend