In the blink of an eye, the internet was up in arms about Gucci’s use of Dan’s design, with many calling out the dangers of cultural appropriation and the lack of diversity in the fashion industry. This photograph now hangs in the Dapper Dan Gucci atelier. You can also now find him on Instagram.ĭan with LL Cool J in his first custom “Gucci” jacket. He began sharing some striking pictures of his designs worn by famous clientele back in the day. For many years, he was a forgotten Harlem tailor who had dressed music’s biggest names for free when they couldn’t afford his custom clothing for their first videos and photo shoots.īut with the arrival of a new generation, Dapper Dan began to find his way back via the internet in the 2000s. The brands had taken everything from him and he found himself sewing in a basement, rarely visited by his former clients, many of who had found fame and fortune. In the nineties, he laid low his fashions disappeared from the MTV videos, and his business went dormant. Below: A pair of Dapper Dan sneakers that recently sold at auction. Love it or hate it, it’s well-worth a look for anybody interested in a crossroads of aesthetics, class and culture.Ībove: Olympic gold and silver medalist, Diane Dixon. It wasn’t available to him or his community, so they made it their own. While it’s no surprise that the designer brands objected to the unofficial use of their logos, what Dapper Dan created was a totally original re-imagination of style. Salt-N-Pepa album cover in 1988, featuring Dapper Dan creations As a result, of the exposure, Louis Vuitton, Gucci and Fendi all sued him.Ī special creation for Mike Tyson back in 1986. The encounter resulted in an almighty scuffle that hit headlines everywhere, thrusting Dan’s operation into the spotlight. In 1988, two of Dapper Dan’s clients, boxers Mike Tyson and Mitch Green, crossed paths at his Harlem boutique in the early hours of the morning. Without access to the fabrics, Dan started a clandestine DIY operation out of an apartment in Harlem, screen-printing designer fabrics from machines using highly toxic chemicals. It would take luxury fashion years to catch up and recognize the value of streetwear and underground urban culture. In the beginning, he bought real designer bags right from the stores, cut them up and outfitted them back together to create custom streetwear with the high-fashion logos. He recognized there was a demand in the market for tailoring designer prints in a way that the high-fashion brands were not. “Dap”, born Daniel Day, was originally a furrier but was looking for a way to keep his sales strong through summer. Dubbed “Hip Hop’s fashion godfather” who “planted the seed for fashion” in the music genre, Dapper Dan’s client list included everyone from Harlem hustlers to the likes of Run DMC, Mike Tyson, Salt and Pepa, LL Cool J and Bobby Brown, who would spend hours at his store on 125th street which stayed open all night and day for 8 years. His name is Dapper Dan and before the likes of Kanye West and Rihanna were doing it, this guy was the first to bring designer fashion into the context of street culture. He was selling custom-made clothing to Hip Hop’s finest for thousands of dollars a piece, fashioned from rolls of fake Louis Vuitton, Gucci and Fendi prints out of his Harlem boutique during the 1980s.
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