Now, you might think it a tad odd to write about a line of t shirts in the midst of one of the coldest months of December that I can remember but I just couldn't resist turning my attention to the second drop from British Remains. You might recall back in (oh so warm) July that I introduced the label after one particular design caught my eye and captured my imagination. As they could not find any decent printed t shirts for themselves, Andrew Bunney and Daryl Saunders took matters in to their own creative hands. The duo have talked for many years about the things they like, hate and mourn about the nation and British Remains will explore some of those feelings.
The second series, just like the first, is a tightly edited offering, with each item encapsulating precisely what the label is all about. As the debut offering gave the printed cotton treatment to London brickwork, toilet signage and Generation X, the sophomore series celebrates facets of Britain and localised symbols that would ordinarily not be known outside of these shores. This time the pair highlight a prison constructed completely using convict labour in 1874 and later the sight of a rooftop protest over visiting rights staged by IRA prisoners, celebrate the life of Robert Fraser and offer a selection of treasures...
The second series, just like the first, is a tightly edited offering, with each item encapsulating precisely what the label is all about. As the debut offering gave the printed cotton treatment to London brickwork, toilet signage and Generation X, the sophomore series celebrates facets of Britain and localised symbols that would ordinarily not be known outside of these shores. This time the pair highlight a prison constructed completely using convict labour in 1874 and later the sight of a rooftop protest over visiting rights staged by IRA prisoners, celebrate the life of Robert Fraser and offer a selection of treasures...
LOOT! What a bounty...a few of the disputed treasures include the Rosetta Stone, Elgin Marbles, Koh-i-Noor and Sultanganj Buddha.
Wish you were here... HMP Wormwood Prison has certainly had a colourful past and just last year was listed as a Grade II building, principally because of its distinctive gatehouse as depicted on the shirt.
Robert Fraser. Fraser was a noted London art dealer and gallerist during the swinging sixties and beyond. Paul McCartney described him as "one of the most influential people of the London Sixties scene." His exhibitions helped to launch and promote the work of many important new British and American artists including Peter Blake, Richard Hamilton, Gilbert and George, Andy Warhol, Ed Ruscha and later Jean-Michel Basquiat to name just a few.
The once challenging, political, humourous, marginalised printed tees of old have seemingly lost their way no thanks to the mass produced varieties hanging on rails across high streets near and far. Bunney and Saunders wanted to reignite a printed passion and they certainly have with this blogger.
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