From the Editors
HIGH AND LOW Words Alessandro Rognoni
From Jil Sander x Uniqlo to Dior x Nike, from Tiffany x Supreme to Versace x H&M, collaborations between high and low fashion are crucial to contemporary relationships between brands and the public. On the high end, they offer an opportunity to democratise a brand’s image, de-stigmatising themselves from being exclusive. On the low end, they are a great marketing opportunity. Now part of the mainstream way of fuelling the business, the way these collaborations come together is often telling of the controversies of our society..
Off-print In the year 1982, at the age of 38, Daniel Day started his own clothing boutique in Harlem, New York City. Often working 24/7, he initially struggled to find the textiles he needed, and companies willing to do business with him. His urban position and race were too high barriers to overcome and, somehow, teaching himself textile printing was left as the only option. After mastering screen printing on leather, a material to him more accessible, Day began to stamp logos from high-end luxury brands on most of his clothes, Gucci in particular. Day, who grew up just around the corner from his shop, began to be known with his boutique name, Dapper Dan. Just a few years later, Dan’s popularity in Harlem was sky-high, and the image of late 80s NYC hip-hop royalty was one very much associated with his clothes. People like LL Cool J, The Fat Boys, Bobby Brown, Eric B. & Rakim displayed fake Gucci prints on the cover of their albums, and so did Mike Tyson and Dian Dixon when appearing in public. Simultaneously, on the other side of the Atlantic, the Gucci brand was in great crisis, seen as archaic in comparison to the fresh work of Versace and Armani. The Rombi motif print, the house’s signature, became a symbol of outdated (Background Image) - Current Gucci collab, inspired by Dapper Dan's 80s design.
traditionalism, and the Gucci family feud of the early 80s (now showing the cinema) left the company derelict. Dapper Dan's practice was, in fact, built on an image of decadence of its high-end counterpart, but also eventually brought to court in 1993 by the companies he was knocking off. As a result, Dapper Dan’s Boutique was forced to shut down, and the designer almost disappeared for more than two decades. Recently, in 2018, something extraordinary happened. Under the direction of Alessandro Di Michele, Gucci was accused of copying one of Dan’s original “copied” designs in its winter collection. Following allegations, the fashion house’s response was shocking, as Gucci pushed to start a collaboration with the now 73 years old designer, to create a capsule collection inspired by his archive. Marketing aside, something was acknowledged in Dapper Dan’s inheritance, previously ignored: appropriation was recognised legitimate creative intent, and so was the cultural, surreal but canonical position of street-wear in the recent history of design. One year later, the fashion house opened an invitation-only atelier with Dan in a joint venture, supplying fabrics for his new creations. The atelier still stands today, in Lenox avenue, Harlem.
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