Signs of the Times

In the mad world of luxury fashion, designers are co-opting cultural icons like McDonald’s, Mickey Mouse, and MTV. How cool! (and confusing!)
 

- Eric Wilson

What’s in a name?

In perhaps the strangest fashion moment of recent history, one of the hottest items to come off the spring runways this year was what appeared to be an ordinary DHL delivery person’s T-shirt but was actually a re-creation by the buzzy French label Vetements. Duchampian in its mischievous satire, the shirt cost $330 and sold out in many stores, prompting both fascination and outrage.

Not long ago, conventional wisdom had it that in fashion, nothing was more valuable than the purity of a brand. It is for this reason that a designer might spend decades crafting an image so precisely that it becomes widely recognizable simply by a label, a logo, or in some cases a color (think of Christian Louboutin’s red soles or Tiffany & Co.’s robin’s egg blue packaging). These are things that are not to be messed with, as fashion lawyers will remind you.

Lately, though, designers of all stripes seem to be questioning the value of being so serious all the time. When Marc Jacobs designs an MTV-themed collection, Gucci meets Snoopy, and Coach collaborates with Mickey Mouse, there’s definitely something funny, if not hilarious, happening. Meanwhile, Moschino’s Jeremy Scott has practically turned brand parody into an art form with his riffs on Barbie, McDonald’s, Hershey’s candy bars, and Marlboro cigarettes. Even Giorgio Armani showed a sweetly silly emoji camisole for his spring Emporio Armani collection.

“Icons are what we use to speak and communicate today,” Scott says. “Mickey Mouse ears are something everyone understands, from Hollywood to Timbuktu.”