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Wieden+Kennedy Designers Create The Mask Equivalents Of Ugly Holiday Sweaters
By Mikelle Leow, 11 Dec 2020

‘Singing Choir of Santa Babies’ (left) by Allison Berg, ‘Slam Dunk’ (right) by David Trujillo, Adam Sirkin, and Chris Huang. Images by Wieden+Kennedy Portland and featured with permission
Staying covered this winter doesn’t just mean layering up with Grandma’s sweater. With the coronavirus still lingering in the cold air, your face needs the protection too.
One of the most enjoyable holiday traditions is to love-hate ugly sweaters. So to cheer people up during a highly unusual festive period, advertising agency Wieden+Kennedy Portland has teamed up with the Oregon Health Authority and Portland Garment Factory (PGF) to celebrate the custom, 2020 style. Together, they have designed a collection of dramatic ‘Ugly Holiday Masks’ to keep you in a joyous mood while remaining socially responsible.
W+K’s designers, along with designers from PGF and local artists, took creative liberties with the idea of tacky holiday fashion and ended up delivering 26 versions of “the ugly holiday sweater of 2020.”
A dozen of the kooky designs are up for purchase on the PGF store, each retailing for US$25 to US$35. For the sale of every mask, US$25 will be donated to the Oregon Food Bank. The other styles are one-off creations for influencers.
While a few of the pieces have already sold out, W+K hopes this won’t deter people from wearing their own ugly holiday masks. “The goal of this effort is to keep yourself, your friends and your family safe,” the ad agency told DesignTAXI. “So even if these ugly holiday masks sell out, we hope we’ll encourage folks to make their own ugly holiday masks. Because masks save lives.”

‘Fireplace’ by Christin Spagnoli from W+K Portland. Image by Wieden+Kennedy Portland and featured with permission

‘Snowy 3-D Trees’ by Reshi Dev from W+K Portland. Image by Wieden+Kennedy Portland and featured with permission

‘Pandas Holiday’ by Portland artist Fuchsia Lin. Image by Wieden+Kennedy Portland and featured with permission

‘Stocking + Gifts’ by David Trujillo from W+K Portland. Image by Wieden+Kennedy Portland and featured with permission

‘Santa Beard with Cookies’ by Nick Humbel from W+K Portland. Image by Wieden+Kennedy Portland and featured with permission

‘Snowglobe’ by David Trujillo from W+K Portland. Image by Wieden+Kennedy Portland and featured with permission

‘Holiday Tree’ by Britt Howard from Portland Garment Factory. Image by Wieden+Kennedy Portland and featured with permission
Explore more designs below:
[via Wieden+Kennedy Portland, featured with permission]
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