Von Dutch: The Art, The Myth, The Legend
Von Dutch is one of the most interesting characters in hot rod and popular culture history. Considered the founder of 杜odern・pinstriping, he was a prominent character in many of the rodding magazines of the late ・0s, and his fame endured long after he apparently tired of it. Besides being a striper, he was a gifted artist, machinist, and gun- and knife-smith.
Despite his genius and popularity, Dutch never made any money from striping. Money was something he detested. In this quote from a 1965 article Dutch explains his thoughts on money.
"I make a point of staying right at the edge of poverty. I don't have a pair of pants without a hole in them, and the only pair of boots I have are on my feet. I don't mess around with unnecessary stuff, so I don't need much money. I believe it's meant to be that way. There's a 'struggle' you have to go through, and if you make a lot of money it doesn't make the 'struggle' go away. It just makes it more complicated. If you keep poor, the struggle is simple. "
"The company's current owner, Tonny Sorenson, never met Howard aka , nor has anyone else who is a part of our organisation, thus it is difficult for us to make a statement about the man as a person.
"We choose to celebrate Kenneth Howard's artistic achievements and his contribution to Kustom Kulture, the Southern Californian culture that Von Dutch Originals is founded on and inspired by."
In the years that followed, Von Dutch became more violent and reclusive. By the time he died, he was practically unapproachable, and was spending most of his time crafting and decorating guns. His last words were reportedly "Heil Hitler".
So next time you pull out your credit card and bust out for that 130 dollar Trucker have a moment to think about what this guy was all about and what fashion culture has made him into
it has been something that has bugged me for a while
Respect to those who show it and know it b rad
4 comments:
Goddamn bigots.
I was reading a book on philosophy last night about Epicurius, who believed that it's cool to get rich and shit but it's really about what spins your wheels that makes your life a successful one. If Howard picked the things he loved and stuck with it his life was a success. Alternatively maybe he was a bipolar depressive who was on the one hand creative and on the other a drunken angry bigot. Shit, it's not like nice people have a monopoly on cool, creative or even good. A little pepper never hurt no-one.
If you were a global fashion markleting company what would you do about your founder's image? Wash it or wear it?
The fact that he's now a global brand and that dodgy terrorist supporting asian anti american gangs are reaping profits from pirating his logo is probably just karma. I wouldn't sweat on the ethics of corporate culture eroding indepentdent thought. Hell I want to get on board that train and collect some of the moolah as soon as I can.
Here's a Von Dutch article in barracuda magazine
And don't forget to complete the look. If you wear a Von Dutch hat you should also be wearing your wife beater.
And if this guy was alive today he's probably be a Gorean Lifestyler.
Now we are cookin some serious Mass-Debating i dont really know too much shit ... i see myself as quite the Dumbass But i like to say it balls and all and i appreciate people who do the same
Party on Wayne
party on garth
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