Who is the Gen Z artist behind Prada’s new sneaker collection? Cassius Hirst, son of Damien Hirst

Cassius Hirst was spray-painting sneakers and putting them up on Instagram for fun, but even then he was getting messages asking where they could be bought

When he showed his dad, artist Damien Hirst, he was put in touch with Miuccia Prada – the designer loved them so much there is now a Cass x Prada collaboration

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Cassius Hirst began spray-painting sneakers for fun. He never imagined this would lead to a collaboration with Prada. Photo: Prudence Cuming Associates Ltd

Published: 4:15pm, 31 May 2022

Is success about who you know or what you know? When it comes to 22-year-old Prada collaborator Cassius Hirst, the answer is probably both.

Cassius – who goes by Cass – decided to start painting sneakers after he read about a Nike and Virgil Abloh workshop where participants did just that. Soon afterwards, he started buying box-fresh sneakers and covering them in swirling, abstract prints using a spray paint gun.

At this point, he wasn’t thinking commercially, he was just having fun, and he began posting his hand-painted designs on Instagram. His first inkling that this could be something bigger was when major names like A$AP Rocky and Playboi Carti started messaging him to ask where they could buy them.

The real turning point, though, came when he wrapped a sneaker in tape and vinyl, painted on top of it to make an undulating landscape of curves and craters, and then showed it to his dad. The father in question was legendary British artist Damien Hirst, who saw his son’s creations and immediately said (according to Cassius), “I’m going to send a photo to Miuccia”.

Prada x Cassius Hirst sneakers. The Cass x Prada is a limited edition range of hand-painted, entirely unique pieces.

Miuccia is of course Mrs Prada, and the result of that message is Cass x Prada, a collaboration that has reimagined the brand’s iconic sneaker in a limited edition range of hand-painted, entirely unique pieces.