Rick Owens S/S 15 - Men's, Paris

[LOVE]

relevant quote from superfuture user madame twerq in their respective ss15 thread:

The entire reason we know who Rick is and why he works in Paris instead of LA is because he sold out to Italians and accepted a nod from Wintour, nearly 15 years ago. None of us were into or aware of him when he was actually cool, so saying "ey i liked rick since crust that was five years ago!!" gives you no more agency to the clothing than someone who showed up after hearing the name in a rap song.

[AKA*NYC]

People look at it like "shit 707 wore this Lucia Pieroni makeup in Where My Girls At and every rapper and R&B singer from the block whether Jodeci or Blackstreet had a black leather suit with slim cut blazer in '96." 90s Hip hop practically monopolized mesh and black leather.

i think you've inadvertently made a good argument for rick being influenced by r&b rather than rap.

while i empathize with your anti-elitism it's self-evident that carlo mollino is more relevant to this discussion.

[DudleyGray]

relevant quote from superfuture user madame twerq in their respective ss15 thread:

No, I think it definitely carries more weight to have known about Rick because of Anna than A$AP, within fashion anyways. In a general context, sure, anyone can wear anything, who cares.

[Faust]

Apologies for being a new user. But actually yes. I think we should talk about this today, tomorrow, and five years from now until we're all blue in the face. I think as we go about our daily lives interacting we should ask ourselves "Who is this for? Who is this not for? How is this framed? What kind of agenda setting is going on?"

But perhaps that's just me.

Absolutely. I was being half-serious. Only half, because any previous attempt at a serious discussion on the subject at hand was highjacked either by accusations of elitism or by the "I-won't-wear-it-because-they-do" camp. Knock yourself out. Maybe something fruitful will materialize this time.

[woupes]

I fucking hate fashion forums.

I sat back for years here and read this and so much more before. I know all about the nod from Wintour and selling out to the italians. Where are the leather jackets sewn now?I am not fashionable, stylish or trendy and don't know shit about leather bars. What I do know is what I like, let asap whoever co opt the look or brand. I'm gonna do some co opting of my own, what I love about Ricks stuff is depending on how you wear it thats what you get. I can dress it up Rick, industrialize Rick, slouch it Rick, heavy metal Rick etc... all without a stylist ha! All I know about fashion is what I like and as much as I enjoy reading this thread I think I'd rather go out to the garage right now and co opt my new Stooges calf with a sandblaster ASAP.

[DudleyGray]

Man, I don't think he's at all worried about being "co-opted"...

ALTHOUGH YOUR PIECES ARE WEARABLE, IT SEEMS THAT THERE ARE NOT MANY WOMEN WHO CAN REALLY LOOK GOOD IN YOUR CLOTHING. WHICH KIND OF WOMEN WOULD YOU LIKE IN YOUR CLOTHING?

I WOULD LIKE MY (very expensive) CLOTHES TO BE FOR EVERYONE. I WANT TO CREATE AN INCLUSIVE WORLD, NOT AN EXCLUSIVE ONE.

Fixed. There's something going on here that he can't be unaware of as he says that. I'm not complaining that the pricepoint is a barrier, nor the hidden contradiction in what he's saying, merely pointing it out.

[Faust]

This is actually a good point and something that, uncannily, I was thinking tonight. If we talk about exclusivity, than the first to be excluded, objectively, even before we get into "should"s and "ought to"s and subcultures and all that, are the non-rich.

[AKA*NYC]

wealth is relative in this case. are we talking non-rich in a western nation or non-rich in a developing nation? from my experience the average person who takes interest in and/or supports the subsection of fashion discussed here isn't necessarily "rich" by conventional standards. if geobaskets cost nothing would that many more people be wearing them than are wearing them currently?

[apathy!]

wealth is relative in this case. are we talking non-rich in a western nation or non-rich in a developing nation? from my experience the average person who takes interest in and/or supports the subsection of fashion discussed here isn't necessarily "rich" by conventional standards. if geobaskets cost nothing would that many more people be wearing them than are wearing them currently?

Of course wealth is always relative but Geobaskets are undeniably very expensive. The fact that very few people will spend $1000 on a pair of sneakers absolutely changes the way the brand is perceived and who it appeals to. If they cost nothing there would probably be a boom of popularity and then a rapid decline. The exclusivity of the shoe is what has given it its coveted status though. So without the huge price the whole appeal of geobaskets would change.

[julian_doe]

This is a very interesting discussion.

Of course, price gives the pieces a certain "exclusivity", because not "everyone" can afford Rick Owens. However, when Rick says "I WOULD LIKE MY CLOTHES TO BE FOR EVERYONE. I WANT TO CREATE AN INCLUSIVE WORLD, NOT AN EXCLUSIVE ONE", I get the feeling that he means to explain that his clothes are not designed for a specific clique or stereotype. As Faust mentioned, Rick can be worn by rappers and rockers with ease, and I believe that he is quite successful in this regard.

To his credit, this is a good approach, as he aims capture the eye of broader spectrum of people instead of aiming to be biased about who his target consumer should be.

[Faust]

wealth is relative in this case. are we talking non-rich in a western nation or non-rich in a developing nation? from my experience the average person who takes interest in and/or supports the subsection of fashion discussed here isn't necessarily "rich" by conventional standards. if geobaskets cost nothing would that many more people be wearing them than are wearing them currently?

I don't think wealth is relative here, $1,3000 is $1,300 and one's salary is fixed, so we can go about it mathematically*, but what relative are the spending habits and psychology of affordability. Still, I will standby and say that luxury goods are expensive is a fair statement to make**.

But I really don't think Rick was addressing the financial aspect but an aesthetic one, so it's not really fair to latch onto that statement in terms of affordability.

*Even though obviously $1,300 buys you much more say in China, the price of luxury goods is actually higher in China.

**I am talking all luxury fashion - poor Rick is just getting in the line of fire

[DudleyGray]

Yeah, it's not quite what Rick meant but interesting enough anyways. Because not only is luxury expensive, but if Rick clothing were cheap or free, it would undermine the luxury, and not necessarily because of financial exclusivity. As it stands, the price tag (along with that design and quality) takes his clothing from an expression of a dark aesthetic to a celebration of it, like the buyer's determination of value. If not for him and like designers, luxury ironically would be exclusive to traditional people, with their John Lobbs what have you.

[interest1]

Made no attempt at striking up the conversation, just said it's my main concern and how I approach looking at brands and fashion as a whole.

Let's leave stepping on dicks to the Strap Me Up Women's high heels thread.

o_0 . .Uh.. photos, please
.

[550BC]

This is referred to as "c*ck crush*ng". Google at your own risk!

WHAT THE FUCK DUDE

[interest1]

This is referred to as "c*ck crush*ng". Google at your own risk!

Nope. Gonna just take your word on that.

But seriously, I was referring to pics-as-proof since he was hyperbolizing my high heels thread.