Is streetwear engaging in appropriation?
When one thinks of high fashion, it’s natural to imagine the flamboyance in design and textile that is a hallmark of old, European, luxury fashion houses. You might think of a hand-embroidered couture dress with inset jewels or a glamorous, skin-tight dress worn by Rihanna at the Met Gala. What you likely don’t imagine is a firetruck-red shoulder bag emblazoned with the word “Supreme” priced at over $2,000.
Streetwear, a style of fashion characterized by its eccentricity, is currently dominating the fashion industry. Clothes emblazoned with block logos, oversized jackets, baggy pants, sweatpants, tracksuits and hoodies are trademarks of brands like Vetements, Bape and the aforementioned Supreme, which had a historic collaboration with Louis Vuitton. Streetwear is slowly infiltrating circles of traditional, high fashion brands. But what is streetwear, and how did this style of fashion that relies on minimalist silhouettes with a rather eccentric color and design palette, come to dominate the fashion sphere?