Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso on April 16 named artist and fashion designer Colm Dillane, also known as KidSuper, as Brooklyn’s first-ever Arts Ambassador.
The newly launched initiative will provide mentorship opportunities for emerging artists, strengthen ties between creatives and cultural institutions and expand public access to the arts, according to a press release.
Reynoso credited Brooklyn for producing renowned artists: "From the Notorious BIG to Basquiat, Brooklyn is behind some of the greatest artists and cultural movements of all time. Even so, too many of our creatives lack support systems to take their careers to the next level," said Reynoso.
Dillane, who grew up in New York City and attended Brooklyn Technical High School, began selling T-shirts in his school cafeteria and later launched KidSuper near Barclays Center.
KidSuper is known for blending fashion, art and storytelling through bold, colorful designs. Dillane has many accolades under his belt, including being the recipient of the Karl Lagerfeld Special Prize from LVMH in 2021 and a guest designer role at Louis Vuitton’s Autumn/Winter 2023 menswear show.
His brand has partnered with names like META, Bape, Canada Goose, the Brooklyn Nets and PUMA. Today, KidSuper Studios in Williamsburg houses a creative hub with a design studio, art gallery, podcast studio and more.
As part of his new role, Dillane also redesigned a limited-edition version of the official Brooklyn pin. His design draws on a signature bubble letter font he used in high school notebooks and early T-shirt designs.
"As many artists before me I used to doodle on my high school notebooks, I would always use this specific font that I would write bubble letters on all of the papers," he said. "This bubble letter font was something I would use on t-shirts, artwork, graffiti moving forward. What a full circle moment to use that same font and aesthetic for the official pin for the Brooklyn Borough President.”
