On the end of streetwear (as we know it)

recently, one of the most popular designers declared that in the 2020's streetwear was going to die. this was particularly notable due to the designer who said it; virgil abloh. virgil broke into the fashion world through streetwear and has continued to use it as a defining theme in his work, both for his own brand 0ff-white, and he has also brought streetwear to louis vuitton since he took the role of men's artistic director in 2018. 

what exactly did he mean by that? is he going to stop making t-shirts and sneakers? is tailoring the way of the future for virgil abloh? in short, no. people will never stop wearing t-shirts and hoodies and sneakers. but what virgil was talking about, and i think he was right, is that the way we consume these things is set for a massive shift. the model that has driven streetwear all the way to the highest stages of fashion - scarcity and youthful aesthetics - is starting to lose its power. this became inevitable when after almost 40 years, capital-s streetwear made it to the highest ranks of fashion on the back of virgil abloh.

Murakami x Louis Vuitton Speedy Bag, 2003

HIGH FASHION HAD FLIRTED WITH STREETWEAR MANY TIMES BEFORE. DESIGNERS AS EARLY AS THE 80'S FEATURED ELEMENTS OF STREETWEAR IN THEIR COLLECTIONS. BUT THIS WAS JUST INTERPRETATION-NO MATTER HOW COMPELLING, BY EUROPEAN FASHION HOUSES LOOKING TO THE YOUTH FOR INSPIRATION. LATER CAME MORE FLIRTATIONS WITH STREETWEAR, INCLUDING MARC JACOBS AT LOUIS VUITTON TAPPING MURAKAMI FOR COLORFUL COLLABORATIONS, JUST AS THE JAPANESE STREETWEAR BRAND BAPE WAS DRAPED ON LARGER THAN LIFE CELEBRITIES LIKE PHARRELL AND KANYE. 

HOWEVER, VIRGIL AT LOUIS VUITTON MARKED A NEW ERA IN THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HIGH FASHION AND STREETWEAR. VIRGIL, AN OUTSIDER TO THE INDUSTRY WITH ONLY A SHORT INTERNSHIP AT FENDI TO COMPLIMENT HIS BACKGROUND IN ENGINEERING AND ARCHITECTURE, ROSE TO PROMINENCE OFF OF A SMALL COLLECTION OF GRAPHIC TEES, SWEAT SHORTS, AND PRINTED FLANNELS SOURCED FROM THE CLOSEOUT SALE OF RALPH LAUREN RUGBY. HE QUICKLY TURNED THAT PROJECT - PYREX VISION - INTO A HUGE STREETWEAR OPERATION WITH OFF-WHITE, BUILT ON THE COSIGNS OF CELEBRITIES, MOST NOTABLY KANYE WEST, WHO VIRGIL WORKED FOR BEFORE STARTING OUT ON HIS OWN. 

Pyrex vision "youth always wins" presentation by Virgil Abloh, 2012

THAT VIRGIL HAS PROPHESIED THE DEATH OF STREETWEAR AS WE KNOW IT SHOULD COME AS LITTLE SURPRISE TO ANYONE WHO HAS PAID ATTENTION TO HIS WORK SINCE PYREX. FROM DAY ONE, HE BUCKED THE "TRADITIONAL" MODEL THAT STREETWEAR IS FOR THE YOUTH. INSTEAD, HE HAS ALWAYS TRIED TO ELEVATE THE STREETWEAR AESTHETIC TO A LUXURY LEVEL - IN WHAT HE CALLED THE TRICKLE UP INFLUENCE OF THE YOUTH. HE CHARGED $700 FOR THOSE REPURPOSED RUGBY FLANNELS, AND SINCE THEN HAS REGULARLY CHARGED OVER $300 FOR A SIMPLE GRAPHIC TEE. THAT FLEW IN THE FACE OF OG STREETWEAR ICONS SUCH AS SUPREME AND STUSSY, WHO ALWAYS KEPT RETAIL PRICES AT A REASONABLE LEVEL, NO MATTER THE FACT THAT THE AFTERMARKET PROVED PEOPLE WERE WILLING TO PAY HUNDREDS FOR THE DESIGNS. 

SIMULTANEOUS WITH STREETWEAR'S ATMOSPHERIC RISE TO THE TOP OF FASHION HAS BEEN ITS DIFFUSION TO THE POINT OF NEAR-UBIQUITY AMONG THE MASSES. FIVE YEARS AGO, MOST NORMAL PEOPLE HADN'T HEARD OF SUPREME, MUCH LESS ANY OF THE COUNTLESS OTHER SMALLER PLAYERS. NOW, SUPREME IS A BILLION-DOLLAR BRAND AND, WITH THE HELP OF THE INTERNET AND WELL-CURATED STREETWEAR BOUTIQUES POPPING UP IN EVER-SMALLER CITIES, MORE PEOPLE THAN EVER ARE CONSUMING "NICHE" STREETWEAR. THIS IS THE DRIVING FORCE FOR WHAT I BELIEVE IS SOON TO BE A MASSIVE SHIFT IN WHAT IS CONSIDERED COOL. TASTEMAKERS ARE IN INCREASING NUMBERS TURNING AWAY FROM THE SUBVERSIVE, OFT-LOGOED TEES AND HOODIES THAT HAVE BEEN THE DEFINITION OF "COOL" FOR AT LEAST A FEW DECADES.

BUT WHAT IS NEXT? VIRGIL'S ANSWER IS THERE WILL BE A NEWFOUND FOCUS ON VINTAGE. BEING AT THE EDGE OF FASHION WILL BE LESS ABOUT THE NEWEST, HOTTEST PIECE, AND MORE ABOUT CURATING A PERSONAL ARCHIVE OF A WIDE RANGE OF PIECES. I THINK HE'S RIGHT. WHAT IS COOL IN A POST STREETWEAR WORLD? EVERYTHING. INCLUDING, PARADOXICALLY, STREETWEAR. THIS IS ABOUT A CHANGE IN HOW WE CONSUME FASHION. PERSONAL STYLE IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER; CURATING A SELECTION OF COOL TEES, INTERESTING PANTS AND SHIRTS, INVESTING IN STAPLE SUITS, IF THAT'S YOUR THING. DOES THIS MEAN PEOPLE WILL STOP BUYING NEW THINGS? NO. CONSUMERISM IS A TRAIN ON AN ENDLESS PATH LIKE THAT IN SNOWPIERCER. AS LONG AS WE INHABIT THIS SOCIETY WE WILL CONTINUE TO CONSUME AND DESIGNERS WILL OF COURSE CONTINUE TO PRODUCE NEW THINGS TO FEED THAT. BUT THIS MAY BE THE END OF TRENDS AS WE KNOW IT. NOW THAT EVERYTHING IS COOL, ITS IMPOSSIBLE TO DECIDE WHAT IS UNCOOL. RIP STREETWEAR. RIP TRENDS.