Fashion has always been used to push limits and create statements. Fashion has always had the power to influence social and cultural transformation, as seen by the daringly short miniskirts of the 1960s mods and the rebellious form-fitting gowns of the 1920s flappers. Some fashion statements are more overt, like slogan t-shirts, while others are more symbolic, like silhouette and color, reported Women's weekly.
Originally, companies used slogan tees as a cheap way to plaster their logos all over people's clothing, effectively turning them into walking billboards. However, they soon evolved into a vehicle for protest and, more crucially, for the dissemination of teenage culture.
By the 1980s, slogan t-shirts had become popular, a fashion statement reflecting the dissent and defiance that permeated pop culture at the time. Designer Katharine Hamnett rose to fame with her creations, including the anti-nuclear clothing she wore to meet with Margaret Thatcher. The phrase "58% don't want Pershing" on the shirt alludes to the vast majority of British people who were against the US Pershing missiles being stationed in the UK.
Katharine told The Guardian, "I wanted to put a really large message on T-shirts that could be read from 20 or 30 feet away." Slogans are nearly subconscious because of how many different levels they operate on. They can serve as a means for people to support a cause. They are ethnic. It's like to branding oneself to wear one.
At about the same time, Katharine happened to be having a conversation in a London nightclub with George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, who expressed their admiration for her designs. The Wham! boys' chance encounter led to them wearing Katharine's well-known "Choose life" t-shirts in the Wake Me Up Before You Go Go music video. Following the success of Katharine Hamnett's slogan t-shirts, a parody of other thought-provoking slogan t-shirts, including the "Frankie Say Relax" shirts, surfaced during the 1980s.
The slogan t-shirt was popular in the 1990s, but it evolved along with the fashions. T-shirt slogans transformed from ardent advocacy into the sarcasm, indifference, and subversion that characterized the decade. This was particularly true for the thriving skate culture of the day. The skate community welcomed slogan t-shirts with open arms because of its DIY and counterculture vibe. Skaters frequently wore t-shirts featuring tongue-in-cheek slogans and obscure allusions to skating culture and jargon.
Long into the 2000s, slogan t-shirts were a hallmark of fashion, worn to flaunt companies, pop culture references, and absurd phrases like "That's Hot" and "Got Milk?" As part of the Time's Up movement in the 2010s, slogan t-shirts were once again used for activism. Numerous celebrities were seen walking the red carpet wearing graphic tees bearing the logo.
Then, though, the omnipresent slogan t-shirt vanished. The demise of humorous, absurd slog t-shirts can be partially attributed to the rise of minimalism. The bold sayings and phrases that adorned slogan shirts have mostly been replaced by social media activism, which allows us to publicly discuss social problems that are important to us and share our thoughts with friends, family, and the public.
But given the cheeky, rebellious statements that have made their way onto the catwalk, it appears as though fashion may be embracing the return of self-expression through graphic shirts once more. Designer Batsheva Hay, who is based in New York City, recently introduced knitwear using phrases like "Hag" and "Spinster," which are typically used to condemn women.
The designer explained her choice to accept the term to Vogue, saying, "It kind of felt liberating to come out as a hag." It's a little bit of a swear word. I'm merely a style maven. However, it feels good: I was tired of the urge to blend in, which manifests itself in many different forms in the fashion industry. Trying to look and dress young is just one aspect of it.
Lirika Matoshi recently debuted a line of adorable slogan-wearing clothes that pays homage to the blatantly self-important style of the 2000s. "I'm always right" and "I'm so pretty when I cry" are a couple of the catchphrases.
In addition to slogan t-shirts, statement hosiery seems to be the next big thing in stylish self-expression. The bold sayings embroidered on stockings from the European brand Saint Sass were first inspired by Cher's well-known 1996 interview comment, "Mom, I am a rich man."
Whatever the message on slogan tees, it's exciting to see the comeback of self-expression in the form of t-shirts after what has felt like a boring few years of bland and homogenized fashion./BGNES