In the world of high-end streetwear, few names command the kind of reverence and mystery that Gallery Dept. does. Known for its hand-finished denim, distressed aesthetics, and art-infused fashion, the brand has always moved in its own lane. Now, founder Josué Thomas is making a bold statement by relaunching his Art That Kills (ATK) brand as a standalone creative platform—a site featuring past merch, music, and art. What does this move mean for Gallery Dept, for its fans, and for the future of fashion-art crossover brands? Let’s dig in.
From Record Label to Creative Hub
Art That Kills originally began as Thomas’s record label, representing his musical ambitions and artistic persona. But on September 11, 2023—his birthday—Thomas quietly launched a new website for ATK, elevating it beyond just music into a creative platform and merch archive.
On this new platform, fans can explore past ATK-branded pieces—tees, prints, sweaters, posters—alongside music and video releases. The move blurs lines: is ATK a label, a fashion imprint, an art outlet, or all of the above? Thomas seems to be embracing this ambiguity and creating a space that merges all his artistic worlds together.
What’s On the ATK Platform
Among the offerings:
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Merch revisits: ATK-branded apparel that once released under Gallery Dept and ATK is making a comeback at more accessible prices.
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Music & media: Albums, music videos, and previously released digital content are now aggregated on ATK’s site, reinforcing its identity as more than a clothing line.
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Restocks & collabs: The site also restocked the Gallery Dept. × Vans collaboration, indicating ATK may serve as a conduit for cross-brand drops.
One example, the Broken ATK Tee, features an ATK logo printed front and back, with a boxy cropped silhouette that nods to Thomas’s signature aesthetic. Another fan favorite, the “Music Lives On ATK” Tee, printed with bold graphics, highlights the fusion of music identity and fashion at the heart of the platform.
Why This Matters
1. A Legacy Archive, Reimagined
Thomas is treating past merch as cultural artifacts. Instead of letting older pieces fade into dust, ATK lets fans re-access them, bridging nostalgia and fashion continuity. It’s a clever way of ensuring that the brand’s creative past remains alive and accessible while celebrating the evolution of Gallery Dept’s visual language.
2. More Accessible Pricing
By Gallery Dept’s standards, ATK pieces appear more approachable. Where typical Gallery Dept tees hover around luxury-tier pricing, ATK versions are noticeably more affordable. This opens the door to a broader audience that has admired Thomas’s vision but found the mainline brand just out of reach.
3. Brand Segmentation & Clarity
With ATK as a separate identity, Thomas can experiment more freely. It becomes a space to release side projects, remixed merch, and artistic experiments—all without diluting the high-end aura of Gallery Dept. Fans of the original brand can now enjoy both: the exclusivity of Gallery Dept and the creative accessibility of ATK.
4. A Signal of Future Drops
Restocking collaborations like the Vans drop hints that the ATK platform may serve as a preview hub for future releases—either ATK-exclusive or cross-brand. It positions the label as both a fashion archive and an innovation space where new projects can launch without boundaries.
Challenges & Open Questions
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Will ATK offer wholly new designs or just past drops? As of now, much of the catalog mirrors past releases. The big question remains whether ATK will evolve into its own independent fashion line with new aesthetics.
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Does this dilute the prestige of Gallery Dept? For purists, reissuing older merch under a different label may seem like over-commercialization. However, Thomas’s artistic direction suggests he’s more interested in cultural impact than commercial replication.
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How will production & quality compare? Maintaining the high standards associated with Gallery Dept will be crucial for ATK’s credibility as a fashion imprint, not just a merch archive.
The Art-Fashion Crossover Trend
Gallery Dept’s move with ATK is part of a larger cultural wave—fashion brands expanding into music, art, and multimedia experiences. Modern consumers crave lifestyle ecosystems, not just clothing labels. Brands like Gallery Dept are redefining what it means to be both artist and designer. With ATK, Josué Thomas has found a new way to merge music, art, and streetwear into a living, evolving gallery of creative expression.
This crossover reinforces a truth: in 2025’s fashion landscape, creativity is no longer confined to fabric—it’s a movement, an identity, a statement. ATK embodies that perfectly.
Final Thoughts
The launch of Art That Kills as a revived creative platform is an audacious move by Josué Thomas. It honors the past while pushing boldly into the future serving as both a digital archive and a hub for experimentation. For fans, it’s an opportunity to reconnect with pieces they missed; for Thomas, it’s a canvas for artistic reinvention.
ATK is not just a new website—it’s a declaration. A reminder that art never truly dies; it transforms. Through ATK, Josué Thomas bridges his past, present, and future, uniting fashion, music, and emotion under one powerful message: Art That Kills, Lives On.
