Yet another way to knock off Julian: Instagram

“The clothier Alexander Julian once quipped that imitation is the sincerest form of aggravation. In the years after he designed the inaugural uniforms, in 1988, for the Charlotte Hornets, his purple and teal—especially the teal—started popping up on everyone from the Detroit Pistons to the San Jose Sharks and the Jacksonville Jaguars.

“The streetwear label Supreme, founded six years after Julian’s colors débuted, loves both mischievous appropriation and nineties pop culture, so it’s not hard to see where it got the idea to drop a Hornets-inspired basketball jersey last year. That’s an easy reference to spot, but not every Supreme graphic and logo design has an origin that is so simple to place. Enter the Instagram account Supreme Copies….”

— From “Supreme Copies: The Instagram That Attempts to Decode Supreme Clothing” by Melvin Backman in the New Yorker (June 1)

 

Critics of Alexander Julian, prepare to be criticized

Did you see this morning’s rave in the New York Times over the Tar Heels’ argyle-accented basketball and football uniforms? The Times noted that Dean Smith’s eye initially had been caught by Alexander Julian’s award-winning pin-striping of the NBA Charlotte Hornets in 1988. Not mentioned, however, was Julian’s less well received work for the minor-league Charlotte Knights.

Here’s what the Los Angeles Times reported in 1991:

“The Knights’ parent club, the Chicago Cubs, is about to junk its farm team’s Julian-designed black uniforms, described by one sportswriter as ‘Knightmarish’….

“Of the Cubs’ decision to change the Knights’ uniforms, Julian said: ‘I’m very disappointed. I did the best I could.’

“Of the sportswriter’s fashion review, he said: ‘I’m tracing the way this guy dresses. Let me just say this. It’s like having an illiterate criticize Hemingway.’ ”