The Smooth Crimi-Noël Contest

Here’s my fave t-shirt there at the moment – Dancer by Mark Taplin – now only £15.

Check the sale out today!

The FP offer a strong commitment to their local community, and have hooked up with DonorsChoose.org in order to support public school teachers requiring funding for independent projects. The Fineprint have already provided funding for a project that will give young men and women from the Hyde Park Academy High School access to “the Art of Airbrushing”. They aim to fund many more projects for the future with your support.

Artistically The FP’s aspirations are just as lofty with a strong collection of cultural and political tees and prints that reflect Chicago, America and global ideologies in equal measure. Ranging from urban culture to city scapes, the famous and infamous, our relationship with nature and both historical and contemporary art and literature, The Fineprint offer a unique yet eclectic broad brush of ideologies rarely seen as subject matter for the humble tee. Their handmade product range are of a high quality, all hand printed and highly desirable for those seeking alternatives to the mainstream fashion scene.

Chi Scraper Tee

Chi-Scraper offers a dynamic view of the economic schisms that exist in Chicago. Whilst certain areas have economically boomed, others are still in decline, with a string of notorious gangland shootings following much the same tradition as that in the history of the area, the juxtaposition between the blue chip corporate skyline and decay encapsulates much of the world’s problems to this day. In addition the title for this tee is somewhat intriguing, shortening the city’s name to ‘Chi’ brings up a gamut of fascinating references, such as Ch’i or qi (Ê∞î), “life-force” in Chinese culture, corporations literally scraping away the very life-force of the city. Perhaps I’m off track here, but still a fascinating line of enquiry all the same. Chi-Scraper for men is available in Maroon/Orange or Grey/Charcoal prints on either white or silver tees for $19 each in M to XL sizes.

TypeSplatter Tee

Highlighting both the great literary traditions of Chicago with eminent writers born in the city such as Philip K. Dick, Edgar Rice Burroughs and Michael Crichton, as well as those who relocated to the windy city such as Saul Bellow, as well as perhaps the frustrations of those who endeavour to create literature for their generation and beyond, this powerful design encompasses everything one perceives as the experience of the novelist and screenplay writer. Typesplatter features a handmade five colour silk-screen print, this limited edition tee is available for both men at $19 (S to XL) and women at $24 (XS to M).

Great Scott Tee

Okay it’s sold out, and yes I’m a Brit with no idea about basketball, but I still love it. The back detail is a killer, it’s a superb concept and really nicely printed. There’s something of a similar style available here that features Obama doing his thang on the court, but man, Great Scott is such a cool idea. Makes me think they could knock out a few more like this, it’s like the conclusion to a story, a really nice way of using the both sides of a tee, I do hope their artists think of more along these lines. As far I know this print features Scottie Pippen (Thanks to Michael Jordan for the correction), He was a seven-time NBA All Star and was the NBA All Star Game MVP in 1994. He was named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History during the 1996‚Äì97 NBA season, and is one of four players to have their jerseys retired by the Chicago Bulls. To me it doesn’t really matter who the guy is, it’s just a very very powerful image and concept altogether.

Blagojevich Tee

It doesn’t matter where you live, you’ll recognise this guy, Serbian born, former 40th governor of Illinois was arrested on federal corruption charges December 9, 2008. The charges involved conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and solicitation of bribery. The Justice Department complaint included attempting “to obtain personal gain … through the corrupt use” of his authority to fill Barack Obama’s vacated United States Senate seat. In a press briefing on the investigation, U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald characterized the scheme as auctioning the seat off to “the highest bidder”. Now there’s a real joker. Blagojevich (The Governor of Gotham) tee is available for men for $24 in sizes M to 3XL.

Support Chicago’s thriving arts scene and help FP support local public schools at the same time – check out the whole collection of art shirts and prints at www.thefineprintchicago.com today. Also make sure to keep up with all the latest on FP at Facebook, Twitter, Myspace and their Blog too!

OtherCriteria.com, their online presence for the vision of an eleven strong team of designers, production managers and assistants, is supported by the off-line exposure of their merchandise at their two London stores, 36 New Bond Street, and 14 Hinde Street, London. I personally feel that this review represents a validation of my own beliefs that the humble t-shirt has until very recently been a neglected medium in the world of the arts and that perhaps now at long last both artist and collector can truly engage in a whole new field of creative consumerism unseen in retail history. From the likes of Damien Hirst to Banksy, a more general public have at long last been able to engage on a deeper level with every echelon of the artistic community, conceptually and emotionally helping to support their practice, forming their own base of opinion and venturing forth where no consumer has ventured before.

My own experiences of the British arts education system have left me somewhat jaded, with tutors and galleries alike assuming that only the elite can appraise, criticise or even purchase art. This seemed an outdated premise even then, some 20 years ago, but at long last with the progressive attitude of companies such as Other Criteria, the urban art movement, the rise of the global Internet community, and a general awareness by all of the context both sociopolitical and historical that we find ourselves in today, we can expect this to be but the beginning of a far more self-aware consumer revolution. The art market is also shifting in a new direction, unaffected by the establishment’s world weary view of what should constitute creativity. Art for the people = power to the people. Mass consumption has led to many problems in our age, yet now at long last the individual seeks more than an aggregation of the familiar, they crave the unique, the fundamentally altered, a higher perspective of both their own existence and the world we live in.

The contemplative, inspirational and highly acute products of OC are one example of a progressive wave of entrepreneurs and creative collectives aiming to offer an alternative vision, one that suffices more than mere need or want, supplanting the desire for the object with a heightened sense of realism, a proposal for a new and deeper relationship between consumer and producer. In this context, at this time of political, social and economic turbulence, quality of life, quality of experience, and quality of the product are at the forefront of public expectation. Now is the time to consider Other Criteria, and of course in particular their own fine range of art tees.

.000139 cal./millisecond Tee by Michael Joo

This t-shirt design by Michael Joo, a highly respected American/Korean artist whose works have been compared to such grand dignitaries of the arts such as Joseph Beuys offers us a snapshot into the the cold and calculated physics of death, or rather the mechanics of murder. .000139 cal./millisecond dissects both the means and results of a single gunshot, the primary image revealing the inner workings of a typical Smith & Wesson revolver, almost as a pathologist might do with the recently deceased victim of a violent crime, veiled with the objectivity of science, using terminology and procedure to mask any empathy or emotional connection a technician of the mortuary may have for yet another John Doe. Subtly secreted on the sleeve is an infamous quote from John W Hinckley Jr. which reads ‚ÄúGuns are neat little things, aren’t they? They can kill extraordinary people with very little effort.‚Äù Hinckley is known for his attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan, perhaps the most Republican of all Democrat leaders in the history of North America. He was supposedly obsessed with Martin Scorsese‘s masterpiece of the silver screen ‘Taxi Driver‘ and in particular De Niro’s portrayal of Travis Bickle which in turn was based upon Arthur Bremer, the attempted assassin in 1974 of U.S presidential candidate George Wallace. However Hinckley’s true reason for his own assassination attempt was actually due to an obsession with the actress Jodie Foster who played a child prostitute in the movie, it was simply his way of drawing her attention towards him after several other stunts including threats of hijacking a plane had failed. Joo’s t-shirt reveals a shocking slice of social history blurred and marred by the over-weaning influence of both technology and the media on the fragility of the mind and body. It is available in black for £30 in sizes small to large for men, and small for women.

Beyond Belief Tee by Damien Hirst

Yes it’s a Damien Hirst piece, based upon his work For The Love of God, a diamond encrusted platinum cast skull which cost £14 million to create and was sold after being exhibited at the White Cube Gallery in London for £50 million, the highest ever recorded price for a new piece of art. Before the arrival of Hirst and in particular this piece of work I had always had an admiration for Jeff Koons, and in essence how he had in turn managed to ‘play’ the art market. Before we get into any arguments about elitism in the arts let us just consider one thing, those individuals, trusts, corporations, and private organisations with the budget for such pieces play a rather schizophrenic role in many successful artists’ lives. Those who ‘invest’ to such a phenomenal degree in the arts allow artists to expand their vision, invest in their space, materials and new pieces for the future. Furthermore that funding allows those more philanthropic artists to set up ventures such as Damien Hirst (amongst others) with OtherCriteria.com or Banksy’s PicturesOnWalls.com in order to showcase many other talents in their respective genres and beyond. But more than that it is a philosophical yet proverbial two fingers up at the establishment, as mentioned earlier American artist Jeff Koons had done something on similar lines at almost the very beginning of his art career. – although to a far less grand scale with his Jim Beam J.B. Turner Train. Koons’ early career was funded by his job as a trader on the stock market and he was well aware of exactly how money made money, by casting his train in silver he was guaranteed to move his work to a ‘higher bracket’ in the art market. This all may sound too cynical for some but it is the nature of mankind to exploit, be it minerals, metals, energy or indeed creativity. Is it not better that artists like Hirst exploit themselves rather than wait for uninformed money men to do it to them? Beyond the mere mechanics of this work there are many other factors to consider including the cult of youth, the media fuelled global fear of decrepitation, surface beauty including the ironic use of various killer toxins such as Botox in skin treatments, monetary versus intrinsic value, the value of the individual in an overcrowded and under resourced world and so on. A metaphor for a generation, for an age, and now for those with less than vast economic resources, you can purchase a Hirst in the form of a t-shirt. Beyond Belief is available for £45 including VATin sizes S – L for men, small for women and also kids’ sizes at £25.

Untitled (Drainer / Globe) T-Shirt by Michael Craig-Martin

Michael Craig-Martin is what I call, for the main part, a seminal conceptualist, detached, implicit, and at all times very much aware of the rules and constructs within which he engages. His treatment of images intentionally lack differentiation, sometimes incorporating art references, such as iconography and/ or iconic objects found in Dada artworks. His work can be compared to that of his earlier contemporary Patrick Caulfield and latterly with that of Julian Opie. Craig Martin was born in Ireland, grew up in the USA eventually studying Fine Art at Yale before moving to Britain in 1966. As I research the connections between Michael Craig-Martin, Damien Hirst, and others who all were eventually involved in the ground breaking Freeze Exhibition in 1988 I realise I may have made the biggest mistake of my life by choosing to attend Brighton rather than Goldsmith’s. I studied art from 1988 to 1991, I suppose I can’t regret it now after all this time but it does seem the sort of people I needed around me then were in London, it’s a shame but it can’t be helped now. This is a fascinating piece, or rather engagingly banal, and deliberately so. Using a range of colours that may look more suited in a children’s book or a nursery, applying mechanical widths to each line, the juxtaposition settles and unsettles in waves of equal measure. Craig-Martin’s first retrospective took place at in the Whitechapel Gallery in London in 1989. In 2006, the Irish Museum of Modern Art presented ‚ÄúMichael Craig-Martin: Works 1964-2006‚Äù which included works from over 40 years of Craig-Martin’s career. To own your own piece of post modern art memorabilia purchase an Untitled (Drainer / Globe) T-Shirt for £30 in sizes small for women and small to large for men (including VAT).

Can’t Breathe Without You T-shirt by Rachel Howard

The name Rachel Howard first came to my attention within a quote by Damien Hirst in reference to his spot paintings and in particular their production process. “I only ever made five spot paintings myself … And my spots I painted are shite. They’re shit compared to … The best person who ever painted spots for me was Rachel. She’s brilliant.” “The best spot painting you can have by me is one painted by Rachel.” Howard has exhibited across the world, her unique large scale paintings venture into an abstraction of the human condition, consistently addressing actions of futility and moments of realisation once found soon lost. This t-shirt refers to a solo exhibition and book from her 2007 collection Can’t Breathe Without You, her works having always fused corporeality with the (il)logical progression of dreamlike thought processes, figurative and abstract layered to an extent that one feels swallowed by the assuredness of the lie that is the promise of truth. This t-shirt featuring an asthma inhaler is available for £30 in sizes small for women and small to large for men.

Do visit the rest of Other Criteria a fascinating outlet for high art, even for those on a low budget.

TIP offer a refreshingly open and welcoming way of doing business, providing a straightforward store in a straightforward manner, holding their heads high in everything they do, in order to satisfy both their own personal needs as creative people and in offering an incomparable service that they themselves would expect to receive no matter what the sector. William Matte, Jr. along with a hand-picked group of select artists aim to raise the expectations of almost every aspect of the t-shirt market, carefully designing and producing products they know both they and their customers will be proud of, dealing with those who buy their tees as people rather than numbers, and making sure that their impact on the ecology is kept to an absolute minimum whilst in their own small way bringing attention to the plight of those less fortunate and the exploitative working conditions in many countries today.

Their t-shirts equate to an expressive collection of vibrant colour and sumptuous illustration that one would normally expect from the fine arts market, stretching the boundaries of what is considered the norm in urban fashion design and forever heading onwards to a broader horizon of historical and abstract influences in their exploration of perfect design. Their choice of colours, tones and hues reflect a love and longing for the glorious diorama of the American landscape, from the sun-kissed beaches to the busy metropoli to the Shamanic desert skyscapes beyond. Never obvious in their interpretations TIP have managed to walk a fine line between pure art and pure design. invoking more emotional than intellectual response in their loyal following and beyond.

This Is Prestigious – an apt description for a label with the highest of artistic and business sensibilities.

Talons That Spark Tee

Beautifully illustrated, though not overtly ‘fussy’ in realisation, Talons That Spark may not seem to proffer any particular message at first glance, however for me personally I see a highly subtle underplay of juxtaposed ideas here. The eagle in flight with wings spread, an important symbol for American culture, a bird of prey, a creature of enormous strength and power, and of course of freedom. California is a home to eagles too, (asides the band that is) and most likely is suffering a decline in numbers as much of the wildlife around the world is these days. There is also a hint of the phoenix about this image, rising from the ashes born anew, energy, power, ‘sparks’ literally flying from its body. Something of a poetic representation of the ‘life force’ itself, a humbling thought that all that lives must die, and all that dies must feed the living in some form or other. Our bodies, as with all animals, once laid to rest provide sustenance for the earth, which in turn feeds flora and fauna, and food chain of the species of the world. A unique perception of the wonders of life and the brutal reality of survival. An inspiring piece, Talons That Spark is available for both men (S/M/XL) and women a(M/L) at $20. Both Printed on lime sweat-shop free American Apparel (as are all their products) and features a screen printed inner tag for maximum comfort and zero irritation.

Love Breeds Hot Deeds

A highly expressive illustrated design, I really enjoy the free flowing style of this t-shirt, Love Breeds Hot Deeds takes its cue from a scene in Shakespeare’s Troilus and Cressida and depicts the constant flux and fiery symiotic turbulence of the emotions of love and lust. For those who have found their significant other in the world there is no getting around the fact that one’s feelings for the love of your life will always sway between love and lust (and many others) forever more. The writhing of emotions, bodies, minds and destinies mark the path of true love for a couple destined to be entwined. This t-shirt perfectly mirrors the contradictions of desire and consummation, the natural path and growing pains of lust at first sight evolving into something far deeper and more meaningful as time and experience melds two minds and bodies together. Each with their own innate instincts, each with their own individual needs and desires, moving ever closer together in a bond rarely described with such elegance as the Bard. Love is not a compromise but an alchemical union of two spirits which will be tested to the extreme, but in essence cannot ever break the unbreakable union that only mortality will attempt to conquer. Even then it will fail. Fittingly available for both men (S/M/L/XL) and women (S/M) at $20.

Facade Tee

Facade is one of TIP’s newer releases and ingeniously uses fashion as a metaphor for fashion, which I find highly satisfying on a conceptual level, a case of self referentialism on a grand scale. The definition for the word facade or fa√ßade according to Merriam Webster’s Dictionary is as follows:-

1: the front of a building ; also : any face of a building given special architectural treatment.

2: a false, superficial, or artificial appearance or effect.

Fashion as with the media and almost everything in modern culture has a lot to answer for. The beauty of the surface has taken precedence in just about every aspect of our lives, those who look beautiful can be the spokes person for any cause or company, charity or corporation you care to think of, simply because their features seem ‘easier on the eye’ than those who are truly qualified to do so. The truth has for the main part no surface beauty, its appreciation is earned, as with all that is worthwhile in life one must work at a skill, or a relationship, a talent, an ambition, you name it, if it is handed on a proverbial plate its true value will never be appreciated.

I love what TIP are trying to evoke with this image, using beauty, the beauty of illustration, the structure of design, the ‘art of art’ to raise the question of the old adage ‘seeing is believing’. Scientists have studied physiognomy for centuries now, however technology has almost allowed them to reduce it to a formula, one that most beauty products companies heartily apply to any marketing campaign. A god-like symmetry of the features, proportions of size and tone and colour, eyes that can make you cry, lips that can make you kiss, bodies that will guarantee lust, it’s a mathematical program these days. The media-induced reality we like to describe as life is a mathematical formula and most of us, for the most part, fail the test every time. A fascinating t-shirt, Facade is available for men (XS/S/M/L/XL) and women (S/M/L) for $20 – printed on mint green American Apparel.

New England Tee

This is perhaps my favourite of all Prestigious’ tees, New England, available for both men (S/M/X-L)and women (S/M), is the result of a collaboration between TIP and Derek Deal ( a highly respected illustrator and designer). I can’t say I know too much about New England however I know that at least one of the TIP team was born and bred there and has very strong feelings for the place. What I can say is this is a truly outstanding design, it wavers between so many styles it’s hard to put my finger on them, perhaps a little Van Gogh, a smidgeon of Gustave Klimt even, dare I say it a slight flavour of a Medieval Dr. Seuss, I am struggling here, but that for me is a refreshing experience. I love to be bowled over by design, and this has cleared all ten pins, it’s managed to avoid any feeling of tweeness or sentimentality, instead focusing on the beauty of nature, enhanced by a what seems to be faux woodcut effect, I am lost for words. Beautiful.

Raise your own expectations and stride gallantly to This Is Prestigious, you will not be disappointed, in fact quite the opposite. If I had a hat I’d be tipping it right now ;)

Dan the man shoots high, and from what I’ve seen he’s bang on target. Sharp Shirter isn’t ever going to be a bland mainstream label, you can tell that straight away, but as far as cult followings go this humble t-shirt label is rapidly going from strength to strength selling in 60 stores worldwide with over 100 products including t-shirts, hoodies, pullovers, dresses, and even laptop and phone skins! I can’t really describe this art collective’s designs en masse, each created by one of a small army of highly talented artists under the banner of Sharpshirter, the styles are eclectic, and vary wildly from the beautiful to the hilarious to the stunning and shocking. However, to make my life easier I too can use the power of image to explain exactly what the hell I’m harping on about here.

Working alongside Dan are the venerable ‘El Perro‘ his fab website designer and his roomate and best bud Andrew Kneynsberg, as soon as Dan graduates from Wesleyan University the three of them plan to take the label to a whole new level, if you want to watch the rise of an art fashion collective that’s guaranteed to expand in leaps and bounds, then Sharp Shirter is definitely a fine example of the American Dream at work. Well I’m not American but I’m guessing it looks something like this. The fact is weird is good, art as fine as this can’t be beaten, and t-shirts are the coolest way to show the world just how savvy your eye for fashion retailing really is – with all that under your collective belts you can’t go far wrong in my eyes!

Look up, up there, it’s the Sharp Shirter, he’s aiming at you, but as long as you have great taste in highly evocative and artistic urban wear it shouldn’t be too painful ;)

Banana Split Tee

Okay first off, the Banana Split Tee is an amazing design, I mean beautifully drawn, it’s straight out of a Victorian engraving or something along those lines. I’m showing you the men‘s ($22 S-XL) version because I think it works so much better against this colour, the women‘s ($23 S-L) version is in sunshine yellow, which probably appeals to many women but I don’t think it does the design justice. Personally I wouldn’t wear it, I’m not sure how well it sells as a man’s tee, but in this colour for women would most likely rocket their sales, then again what do I know? Still one hell of a design, it’s quirky, it’s sweet without being sickly, and yet so subtly brutal – I honestly think it would stand up well as a large poster print if Sharp Shirter ever felt like venturing that way. It’s a little frustrating not knowing who drew what, perhaps a smidgeon of a link to the artist would be nice, although I do like the “no description” approach to the store. It’s nice to have a breather from people like me who just write on and on and on and…

Rhino Hunter Tee

Dan particularly wanted this t-shirt featured, nicely drawn and both funny and insightful as a design, Rhino Hunter is the fourth installment of the “When Animals Attack” series. There are quite a few animal tees at Sharp Shirter, it’s nice to know they have their priorities right, if you check out the Sharp Shirter Blog you’ll see some photos of Dan’s hedgehog family, I’ve never seen them so close up, the baby ones are cute, I don’t ‘do’ cute, but I couldn’t help it, I guarantee at least one “ahh” from each of you no matter however tough you may think you are. The sad thing about this t-shirt for me is that in truth very few animals (if any) out there stand a chance against humans, guns or no guns. Whenever I see a news story about angry local residents complaining that they’re being overrun by wildlife I always side with the animals. They’re only rummaging in the bins because there’s nowhere else for them to go. As a kid I remember strolling around zoos and museums filled with dead stuffed animals and thinking how much longer before that’s all we’ll have? Okay political nearly broadcast over, I’d just say two more on the subject “Soylent Green“. Lol. Anyway you can buy Rhino Hunter for $22 here.

Well of Tears Tee

This is as good as it gets for me, I love perspective drawings, moody designs, a sense of expectation can go a long way. Well of Tears is a perfectly illustrated t-shirt available for both men ($22) and women ($23) in navy blue. Minimalist yet power packed with subjective line and expression, it’s a beauty. Fantastic shading on the bricks and such a delicate line of sight between the rope and the shaft of light casting down from above. What can I say – superb.

Mushroom Princess Top

The Mushroom Princess Top – another one for the girls, although I can see this as part of a series, how about a mushroom giant or mushroom god? To be honest it looks like the designer may have has some special mushroom tea to get inspiration for this one. The mushrooms look a little like Fly Agaric to me, blowing on the wind, transforming into some kind of breed of flying jellyfish. Yes I’ve been there and it’s nothing like the movie ‘Shrooms’ which wholeheartedly sucks. A few waves of light, a few giggles and a nice warm feeling as long as you wash the dirt off. (Disclaimer: this blog doesn’t condone anything nawty). Anyway I know a few women who’d love this design, I’m sure it sells very well. A great illustration, subtle, a tad hippie but it definitely does what it says on the label. Have a nice trip ;) Available for $23 here.

SharpShirter.com is so worth checking out, if you love your t-shirts illustrated with aplomb, if you want to wow your arty friends with your incredible taste in attire, you know where to go now :D Keep sharp, keep shooting – cheers to Dan for the heads up.

There’s flash. there’s plush, there’s cool, there’s funny, there’s crazy, and then there’s these guys, their style? Well if you can call it that, a ragtag muddle of crazy artists and designers, their style is so way off the scale I’m all out of adjectives (for once). All I can say is they make me feel sick in a good way, not sick with envy, not sick of the sight of anything in particular, but a strange and rather wonderful home sickness for a life I’ve never had.

If only the friends of my youth had been as together (and untogether) as this demoniacal motley crew I’d have probably started a revolution of some sorts by now, oh to be as reckless and carefree as these loonies.

Sure it looks like a kid drew it, but this kid did it first! I mean if you’re going to target anything on the net for a bit of healthy yet highly cynical rib-tickling then Google has to be high on your list. I can’t stand the way we’re all Googled up to the hilt, at least the spell-checker offers some consolation, it’s obvious Google hasn’t quite made it to status of a verb (quite yet), although I wouldn’t be surprised if The Oxford Dictionary isn’t busy scribbling that one in right now. Google is a bummer, it means funny, witty, interesting, novel lunatics have to compete with clever so-and-so’s who live their lives through the mantra of search engine optimisation. Search and Destroy, if you must, you must.

Tees for Sale is downright nasty! I was going to show one of Das Monick’s prettier tees, but I couldn’t resist this ugly mofo. After all it reminds me of home, which is right here, in a tacky seaside town at the nether end of the UK. It’s dark and miserable out there right now, the beach is most likely swirling under a storm of spume and brine, but I won’t even bother looking out of the window because I’ve seen it all before. God it’s so the end of the Summer, even the tacky little souvenir shops on the promenade have lost all their charm, there’s nothing worse than a British seaside town on the downward slope to Winter. This t-shirt says it all for me, a handmade sign in a dirty old gift shop that you’d never normally bother with, except there’s nothing else to do now, you’re stuck, this is your only choice, this or oblivion. Someone pass me the sleeping pills please.

OMG Keren Richter you are hardcore, yes she is, don’t argue with her. Boxing by Keren Richter. What can I say? Am I getting old? Most probably. Do I like this, I’m not sure. Should it really be a t-shirt, who cares, it’s a work of gratuitous genius. If you’re going to get nasty at least make sure it involves two scantily clad women I say. Then again Keren has deftly managed to reduce the eroticism in this image to a near zero, it’s just jaw dropping isn’t it? I mean, ouch mate, that looks painful. I wouldn’t be surprised if Keren modelled for this one herself, I wouldn’t want to get the wrong side of her after a hard night’s drinking, especially if all I have to protect me are a pair of pants (that’s UK pants by the way, not the American sort.) Wear it if you dare!

Phew! …I’m sure you’re thinking. Yep a nice simple and rather attractive tee by Tiffany Malakooti, there’s probably no deep message here, it just looks great, and besides my girlfriend loves it so I thought I’d better include Feather. I’m loving Tiffany’s surname by the way, I’m thinking of changing mine, it might get me a little more attention for my own artwork instead of these reviews, ah well you can’t have everything. I’ve got a boring name but at least I can spend all day (and night and day) reviewing tees and moaning about the weather eh?

Ah, my student days, when everything that didn’t work, everything split, torn, burnt or broken was inexplicably left to rot in the garden for a year or so. But at least Travis can really doodle – man oh man! Travis Millard’s House is a veritable ode to slobbery, if only more people took his attitude we wouldn’t be living in a credit crunch right now. I remember when people were happy to make do, no matter how bad things got, it was called poverty, and no bank would touch you then.

Even a decade or so ago, if you broke it you fixed it, if you didn’t you had to live with it. I just saw a vid about all the junk the West sends over to China and India; old computers, TV’s, electronics of all kinds. No one seems to know how to fix anything these days, instead we just chuck it out and buy more. But not for long. Soon we’ll all be begging them to send it back, and we’ll pay, it’s all swings and roundabouts I suppose.

Like I said, like all these rather insane artists say – Blood is The New Black – now get your skates on!

RhetoricTshirts.com officially launched on October 4th. An American clothing company focused on if not driven to the core by high-concept design. Their mantra states the use of the medium of T-shirts bears out two distinct design directives:-

Prints inspired by innovative examples of pop art, fringe sub-culture and youth.
Shirts that are custom manufactured from the finest textiles and materials including pima cotton.

In combination these two directives herald a direct challenge to the quality and integrity of competitors’, and t-shirt design and production in the general market.

Rhetoric is founded on the belief that the X and Y generations have adopted the t-shirt medium as a form of personal rhetoric, a means of expression, an arts medium for the public forum that is the street and the urban lives we live. Avoiding the usual clich√©s and crutches of slogans, and reverence to populism Rhetoric marks it’s own territory with aplomb, carving a niche with a deft and precise array of talent and artistic values unbeknownst to many in the transatlantic t-shirt markets.

Bottle Rocket Frog T-Shirt by Dylan Dawson. A highly nostalgic celebration of a boy’s childhood, when firecrackers, frogs, insects, mud, and other simple pleasures in life were the be all and end all. Girls not welcome!

Their diktat maybe bold perhaps even grandiose when one considers the elevated quality of artistry, design and manufacture so many of us expect these days, fortunately they deliver on their promises, offering a feast of art fashion pieces that would look at home in any haute-couture hotspot of our day.

Rhetoric source a diverse array of talent and imagery to create their iconic pieces, commissioning artworks from graphic designers, painters, illustrators and even those of an architectural bent. Cultivating long-term relationships with some of the most respected avant-garde creatives of the day Rhetoric aims to provide a ‘safe harbour’ for high quality design with the intent of invoking thoughtful nostalgia and emotional feedback from their already growing and highly enthusiastic customer base. If you believe you can match their requirements and raise the bar set by their current stable, they offer an open invitation to artists of the highest calibre. Prepare your digital portfolio before contacting them for further details at army@rhetorictshirts.com. Be warned their expectations are unsurprisingly higher than the usual crop of t-shirt companies in the industry.

The Breeze T-Shirt by Dylan Dawson. Extremely evocative design reminiscent of many illustrated Victorian children’s books of the past. A revelry in nature and the season, the cycles of birth, life and death, secreted in the innocence of the new.

Alongside their highly original range of graphic imagery, Rhetoric continue the theme by producing uniquely fitted tees, the shape derived from an ultra-modern ‚ÄúAmerican‚Äù style cut with custom adjustments that reinforce and enhance durability with the intent of dramatically lengthening the life of the product. After extensive worldwide research Rhetoric use only woven Peruvian cotton for their shirts which is far softer than Egyptian and out washes every other cotton on the market. Whilst their thread is nylon, which is highly flexible and virtually unbreakable. All components are retroactive and won’t bleed or fade.

Sling Shot Bird T-Shirt by Dominique Mill√†n. Perhaps my favourite (and most definitely Rhetoric’s) of their current collection. A highly engaging and dynamic design, once more delving into nostalgia, whilst dealing with the interplay of life, death and innocence. Man and nature as one, both as vulnerable as each other.

Rhetoric‘s ethos is one of celebration, a manifestation of the diverse and the absurd of modern culture, and of the quirky nature of its principal founders Lish Cayro and W. Dylan Dawson. Both students of architecture, they have utilised their formal training to bring a more clinical assessment to the needs of the urban fashion market, whilst sharing their personal joy and celebration of art, life, culture and the spectrum of emotions that come in between. Their company is deeply committed towards protecting the environment. The Rhetoric staff does not tolerate waste or exploitation in any aspect of the retail system.

So, what’s up? Well I have at least half a dozen requests for t-shirt label reviews which I’ll be sorting out over the week, and a pile of retorts and explanations from both Spreadshirt and Conduit.com which doesn’t surprise me. Essentially I’ve trodden on more corporate toes (as usual). I’ve added a rather self-congratulatory blurb from SS at my latest Spreadshirt-based post and added a few of my latest gripes to even the balance. As for the t-shirt toolbar Conduit essentially want me to retract my post, hey it’s only little old me, who the hell am I anyway? I’m just a blogger, I’m not a computer whizz kid and I certainly don’t make any money from this but I appreciate what they’re trying to do.

Let’s get this straight, I’ve handed over control to Anthony aka Profits of Teefeeds.com fame and although I’m not promoting it anymore I’m sure he can do wonders with it, I’m just not the co-branding kind, it’s probably unfair of me to lay in so hard on Conduit, they offer the best service of its kind out there – as in free toolbar technology – but it isn’t for me – if I receive complaints I have no power to resolve I simply call it a day, be done with it, learn from the experience and move on – that’s my paltry philosophy – if it can be so called.

Anyway if you’re looking for a free co-branded toolbar and are prepared to wait a while (and rant in your blog to get more than enough support) then conduit are your guys. I’m currently trying to recover one of my long abandoned old PC’s so I can dabble with a few toolbar makers, software that will enable me far greater control which is the way to go as far as I am concerned. In truth I’d rather something that makes Facebook widgets but you can’t get everything you want handed on a plate (unless it’s food i suppose).

So to cut a long story short Spreadshirt are lovely, so are Conduit, don’t listen to me, I am not a corporation, what possible effect could my opinions have, I must be wrong, confused, lost in my own oblivion of how the ‘real world’ works… ahem.

It does make me laugh how over-sensitive some companies are though, I mean do they really think I can jeopardise their grand plans? If people disagreed with me (apart from their staff) I’m sure this little blog would be comment bombed left right and centre. Anyhoo…

Some REAL t-shirt news woot!

Spunky.co.uk who I’ve propped plenty of times before are actually selling one of my designs at last! It would be nice to see payment as promised, after all I signed over the design months ago, but I won’t start lashing out until I am definite, vis-a-vis not jerking me around on this. Besides it’s great to finally see one of my own tees appreciated, I hope, plus Spunky have just opened a new store in Brighton (UK) which funnily enough is where I grabbed my Arts degree so my time wasn’t completely wasted there.

Take a lookie at Old School by err well me!

Don’t worry I won’t let the success go to my head, although some dosh for my bank account would be appreciated! Anyway I don’t make a penny if you buy one or not, I sold the design on a whim, so no pressure, buy if you like. Personally I do but I would ha ha.

Anwyay it’s probably going to be a one-off – I’m moving away from t-shirt design and into the highly pretentious world of post-modern art (which suits me fine :p) – I always was a show-off with too much to say for myself – I’ll keep blogging here and promoting t-shirts as art but my unique perspective on the world seems to leave most fashionistas rather befuddled so it seems only right to try and confuse others who deal with confusion everyday – i.e art lovers – a strange and somewhat intense bunch of people who for the main part feel the stranger the better.

So – I will finally get some sleep tonight (never stay at a riad unless you hate sleeping – they are noisy as hell!) and will resume normal Buy Tees service tommorrow – plus I’ll get cracking with my latest work (which has nothing to do with tees but who cares) – called Reigning Men. If you want to see my strange Indoor Street Art check out http://paulbaines.co.uk

Take it easy!

Perhaps it’s the design, or maybe a lack of exposure on the net, or even all the disasters around the world since competing for their cause (Haiti for instance). Whatever it is things don’t seem to be going well for Steve Paterson, the creator of the website. Of course I’ll do all I can to help over here, which is the main reason for bringing all your attention to the site. FTT have been featured at numerous t-shirt related sites, blogs and forums, but from what I can tell they’ve only sold 731 t-shirts so far.

Maybe they should consider a new t-shirt video (their present one seems defunct) to focus the attention of the world on their just cause, but judging by the t-shirt related videos at YouTube.com it would most likely have to be a ‘wet t-shirt’ video. Charity gets far less attention than soft porn, perhaps there’s an adult webmaster out their looking for a little penitence, how about charity porn? Nope, that idea’s probably another few years away right now lol.

Anyway this isn’t probably the best time for jokes, I just think it’s rather sad how burned out we all are when it comes to good causes. I’m not saying we should literally ‘sex up’ charity, but charities really have to take more drastic action to create a net sensation these days (noble cause or otherwise). If you think you can help boost the profile of this worthy cause you should contact Steve and tell him what you’re doing to help to get a mention at his site.

Steve Paterson
626.378.5824
steve@fiftythousandshirts.com

With all this support FTT should have far more exposure:

• Clear – The creative team behind Fifty Thousand Shirts.
• Squad & MerchSquad – Team behind the store.
• Tim Resudek – Another good friend, and helper on our Virb page and random code goodness
• FiveEdge Media – Made their myspace look like a nice space.
• Media Temple – Their hosting company.
• Kotis Design – The folks who print their shirts.
• Emptees – Showcasing the art of tee shirt design.
• Red is White – Tees that please the eye and the soul.
• CSS Mania – Gallery of XHTML/CSS (tableless) sites.
• Hide Your Arms – A blog about hoodies & t-shirts, with news from the independent clothing world.
• Facebook – Join their Facebook group.
• Most Inspired – Website inspiration gallery.
• Creative Directory 101 – Designer’s apparel directory.
• Tcritic – The Daily Tshirt Fashion and Design Blog.
• Coudal Partners – An ongoing experiment in web publishing, design and commerce.
• CSS Lounge – CSS Gallery, Articles and More.
• T addict – T-shirt culture blog: sales, coupon codes, news & reviews, and artist spotlights.
• Viste Adecuadamente – Camisetas, chapas, gorras, zapatillas, gadgets, tips, juguetes, stickers…
• Net Diver – Digital Culture Magazine
• Church Relevance – Creating Relevant, Effective Ministries

Perhaps we should all send him some new t-shirt designs to pull in more punters?

Anyway go and show some support, I can tell Steve needs it, you might not want one of his t-shirts but lending a helping hand (in any form) is bound to help! Check it all out at FiftyThousandTshirts.com