Morning Comrades. I am going to dig a little into the history of the Riot/ Nike Rip as well as write a little about the reasoning behind making this the last Riot drop today. There will be some of the usual educational material following this if you feel like skipping all this though. If you click on the above image you can see this weekends drop as a preview in the online store already. As always, the paying comrades of this newsletter will be getting an early link to it all on Thursday alongside their discount code.
My own personal foray into brandalism probably started at the end of the 90s whilst traveling around the US and Canada at the time, especially in places like Toronto, Portland and even Vancouver / Seattle a number of unruly anarchist activists had taken it upon themselves to rip into the corporate hellscape we call advertising in public spaces. This is how I came across AdBusters, Crimethinc as well as a few other now forgotten groups, all of whom I call dear friends and that have clearly inspired me since. I have written at length about how I feel about brandalism and the political nature of the work and there are plenty of texts surrounding this ideology on the net. Obviously, as some of you may still remember, my own involvement in the early days of streetwear comes into play here and as always and my work rests upon the shoulders of those giants who did this way before I came into play. SSUR and Fuct most definitely being the ones whose shoulders I am talking about.
The above image was the first draft into the Nike / Riot rip. Took me a minute to figure that, whilst reading being an incredible act of rioting in itself, that the word, Riot, would work just as well, if not better. Clearly it did. That was a little over 6 years ago.
Since then I have released this graphic in so many different colours, patterns and just as many forms that in that time, and this being the best part about it, we have raised and donated well over 60`000 Euros to mutual aid groups, predominately, Doctors Without Borders and that is more then noteworthy. This work genuinely has helped 1000s of people in dire need of material help and we’ve done that. Not I, but all of us together, all of you that have ordered this stuff, waited patiently for me to get it to you and continue to do so. One last time I reckon to really send this off and I know you will all step up to do so.
Obviously, that begs the question why I am discontinuing it if it does so much good. Truthfully, the reasons are pretty egotistical and I’ll be honest as I can be with them here. I had to move home this past year, there were a couple of lawsuits for a number of time & energy consuming reasons - on top of trying to navigate a global pandemic mentally, physically as well as an artist/writer/brand/teacher. The fact that I did as many re-runs as I did this year was due to the fact that I wasn’t in the right head space to create new work for Black Lodges. Yes, of course, the writing here counts, as does the teaching, but those two do not take up as much time & energy as illustrating political ideas worthy of the brand in itself. Fact is, the ugly side of life took the main stage this past year and it has been taxing.
The shitty side effect of that is, that, artistically, I’ve become complacent knowing full well that I can maintain a level of existence with re-runs and occasional new ideas but the time has come to venture back out into that world. I reckon I still have a few good years left in me during which I can push the envelope with Black Lodges as I have done these past 13-14 years. Discontinuing popular graphics and ideas helps me in pressuring myself to get back to that work.
Also, and this is secondary, it’s time for this to go. From a brands perspective this graphic has outlived its purpose a while back and I do not want Black Lodges to be solely connected to that image. That’s really all there is to it and you all deserve, at the very least to be as involved in this community as I am.
This drop goes live on Friday and I will be sending out the links here and in our Telegram Group. For now, I want to thank each and every one of you that has supported this over the years in the knowledge that aside from getting a nice piece of gear, your purchase has genuinely left a positive impact on the world.
Totally different subject but one that is acutely relevant not only to my own work but for you readers also. The backstory here is that I was researching several Feminist and Radical Feminist Writers for a series of lectures I am giving. It is outrageous how little I know of Feminist & Feminist Marxist theory ( and how insanely little this is taught even at University Level ) so I was digging through a number of texts that I found valuable only a day or so into them, to find out that respectively, one writer was extremely racist and the other a TERF ( trans-exclusionary radical feminist )- something I disagree with on principle and logic alone. It blew my mind though that for most of the reading I was doing I was agreeing, or at the very least finding it historically and contextually useful only to be stomped by their respective views on subjects where I personally don’t believe in grey areas. The above talk explains the historical context and thus current pipeline to Racism / TERF views really well, it genuinely helped me navigate some of the reading I am doing and for anyone new to the subjects, this is really helpful.
Again, totally different subject but also very much worth your time. Shame are from the same neighborhood I grew up in back in London and to me are one of the best post-punk bands I have yet to encounter. They were supposed to have played here a little while back but obviously, with Covid-19 once again ripping through the country most shows are cancelled, rightfully so, as much as I miss concerts. The above is a testament to their energy, skill and fucking jams. Just wanted you all the witness that one.
Big brains talk returns tomorrow and possibly for Fridays newsletter so for now, a small selection of hot shots for you to radicalize your bubbles with. As always, without compromise,
Yours,
V.