THE HOODIE
2019-11-25This unprecedented exhibition explores the role of a fashion garment as a socio-political carrier. The hoodie tells many stories – tales of social inequality, youth culture, subculture, police brutality, racism, privacy, fear and style. It is a garment that sparks a range of emotions, communicating all manner of social and cultural ideas and nuances depending on the gender, geography, age, conduct and ethnicity of the wearer and, in turn, the prejudices and politics of the viewer. Popularised by Champion in the 1930s, the hoodie was a practical solution for workmen; it is now, arguably, Western Fashion’s last truly political garment.
The hoodie is at the centre of contemporary dress, hyped as a trend and a must-have item, but elsewhere, is also a signifier of moral panic, banned by certain institutions and dissected by the media as an emblem of inequality, crime or deviancy.
Opposite – February II (2019), Devan Shimoyama
Exhibition runs through to April 12th, 2020
The New Institute
Museumpark 25
3015 CB Rotterdam