Fashion · Graphic design · Lookbook

The Bateman Collection

Four t-shirts that quietly reference American Psycho, through the furniture and art in Patrick Bateman's apartment.

Context: Free study credits, year 1, Avans
My role: Concept, graphic design, mockups, lookbook
Tools: Photoshop, Placeit
Result: Four tee designs and a lookbook

The idea

Lookbook cover for the Bateman Collection with two models wearing the tees — The lookbook cover

From favourite film to t-shirt collection.

I have always been interested in fashion. I love sneakers and use clothes to express myself, so it was time to design t-shirts I would want to wear.

My starting point was one of my favourite films, American Psycho (2000). I rewatched it looking for moments that stood out visually, and the first thing I noticed was the main character's apartment: the home of a design-obsessed man.

Why furniture? It lets me refer to the film in a subtle way. People who do not know the film can still like the shirts, and people who do know it will recognise the nod.

Four timeless designs

01Barcelona chair, 1929

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Lilly Reich

02Hill House chair, 1903

Charles Rennie Mackintosh

03Alanda coffee table, 1980s

Paolo Piva

04Men in the Cities, 1980

Robert Longo, charcoal drawings that hang on Bateman's wall

The designs

Four tees, one system.

I designed everything in Photoshop, the tool I know best. After trying many fonts and a few iterations, each tee got a bold title, a halftone-style illustration of the object and a small "Bateman collection #" line. That line is the only explicit link to the film, and it repeats on every design to keep the collection consistent.

Barcelona Chair tee design: halftone chair and ottoman with bold title — **#1 Barcelona Chair**A wide design, made for the chest.

Hill House Chair tee design: tall red halftone chair with bold title — **#2 Hill House Chair**Tall and narrow, so it suits the back of a tee.

Alanda Coffee Table tee design: green halftone table with perspective title — **#3 Alanda Coffee Table**The top letters are in perspective with the table, a new Photoshop skill.

Men in the Cities tee design: blue and red halftone silhouettes with arched title — **#4 Men in the Cities**Filled in height, so it works on the back too.

Production

When the plan changes.

01
The printThe best technique for a small run is DTG (direct to garment), where the design is printed into the fibres. But the print shops I found either required at least 10 pieces, and I needed four, or did not accept my own textile.
02
The pivotWithout physical shirts I changed the approach. I made photorealistic mockups of models wearing the tees with Placeit, and turned them into a lookbook as the final product of the Bateman Collection.

The lookbook

A face for the collection.

The lookbook shows every tee on a model, front and back, with short captions in an editorial layout. It stands in for the physical shirts and gives the collection a face.

Lookbook page: man wearing the Barcelona chair tee, with a detail of the print — Piece #1 · Barcelona chair tee

Lookbook page: two models wearing the Alanda coffee table tee — Piece #2 · Alanda coffee table tee

Lookbook page: two models wearing the Hill House chair tee, seen from the back — Piece #3 · Hill House chair tee

Lookbook page: two models wearing the Men in the Cities tee, seen from the back — Piece #4 · Men in the Cities tee

Takeaways

What the collection taught me.

Subtle references travel furtherThe shirts work for everyone, and carry an extra layer for those who know the film.

Constraints can improve the outcomeNo printer for four shirts led to mockups and a stronger final product.

Learn by makingPerspective text in Photoshop was new to me, and now it is a skill I can reuse.

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