Hats
February 17th, 2025
Text: Bryan Law
Text: Bryan Law
The hat is the ultimate low-effort, tribal signal - right next to the t-shirt. As aptly put by Acyde in Gary Warnett’s preface in an IDEA Book About T-Shirts by Stüssy - “The T-Shirt is and always has been the easiest way to communicate an idea, a vague philosophy, or some tribal affiliation.”
Hats are right up there next to the t-shirt - as I veer away from any forms of overt branding on my clothing besides the occasional vintage band tee, I feel that the hat has been my go-to mode of expression. For me, the hat is a visual signal to let others know that I do in fact, know. An obscure message, jewelry brand, gallery show, etc. etc. The hat is the last bastion of self expression as I sink into an extremely consistent mode of dressing that some may consider to be dangerously close to “Uniform Dressing”.
Some favorites of mine include a vintage, made in USA Polo hat from the 80’s. The brim so bent out of shape and the fabric of the hat so washed out - you would think the previous owner wore this to surf everyday for 20 years. Or a hat I bought at the Komiyama book store in Tokyo - the words La Guerre du Feu written across the front in large serif font. La Guerre du Feu was a book published by Komiyama which documents over 15 years of collaboration between Purple Magazine’s art director Christophe Brunnquell and brilliant surrealist photographer Estelle Hanania.
That being said, I do plan on making some hats in the near future. These won’t be for sale but will be given out instead - still working out the details. But in the mean time, let me know what you think.