On and one of South Korea’s most interesting fashion brands are ending their six-season partnership with a wild new trail shoe
The final On x POST ARCHIVE FACTION collection puts a radical spin on the Cloudsoma
Swiss sportswear brand On and South Korea’s POST ARCHIVE FACTION (PAF) are bringing one of running’s more unconventional fashion collaborations to a close with Current Form 5.0.
The collection marks the sixth and final season of the partnership, with the two brands returning to footwear for one last reinterpretation of an On running silhouette.
This time, it’s the Cloudsoma PAF, a trail shoe inspired by mountains, rock formations, and the contrast between the permanence of the landscape and the movement of a runner passing through it.
The result is considerably more experimental than your average trail running shoe.
Its quick-drying, high-abrasion upper uses flowing patterns and swirling lines, while an asymmetrical lacing system gives the Cloudsoma PAF an immediately distinctive look.
Those details sit on top of the technical foundations of On’s existing Cloudsoma, a lightweight trainer designed to provide a more connected, natural feel underfoot.
The Cloudsoma PAF will be available in three colourways – Cobble/Raven, Black/Black and Haze/Linen – with the darker versions in particular giving the shoe a surprisingly wearable appearance despite the asymmetric construction.
A monument you can actually run
To mark six seasons of working together, On and PAF collaborated with South African land artist Strijdom van der Merwe to build a circular stone installation on Tenerife that doubles as a permanent trail loop for runners.
On describes it as a “monument to movement”, designed to represent the circular nature of the collaboration while leaving something behind that can continue to be used after the partnership ends.
The process is also documented in a three-part campaign film moving from past to present to future.
It begins with PAF co-founder and creative director Dongjoon Lim arranging pieces from the brands’ previous collections into a circular display, before following van der Merwe as he constructs the Tenerife installation.
The final section sees athletes running around the completed loop.
It’s an appropriately unusual way to draw a line under a partnership that has regularly blurred the boundaries between performance footwear and experimental fashion.
On x POST ARCHIVE FACTION Current Form 5.0 launches on 3 September 2026 via On, POST ARCHIVE FACTION and selected retailers. Pricing has not yet been confirmed.
