Kosuke Kawamura's
"T-shirts are life."
-Vol.01- ALTERNATIVE TENTACLES
Kosuke Kawamura's
Who is wearing what? It's all the more interesting when it comes to T-shirts, because T-shirts are both fashion and a communication tool. Whenever I see Kawamura Kosuke on social media or meet him, I can't help but check out what kind of T-shirt he's wearing, so I thought I might as well have him featured in this series. There's a famous catchphrase that goes "Memories over things," but in this case, things = memories. For Kawamura, and maybe for you too, T-shirts are life.
Vol.01 ALTERNATIVE TENTACLES T-shirt
"It was created by my eternal idol."
The first instalment of this series features a T-shirt from Alternative Tentacles Records, a music label founded by Jello Biafra, the lead singer of the hardcore punk band Dead Kennedys. This T-shirt was first discovered through Winston Smith, a leading American collage artist who also created the Dead Kennedys' logo and artwork. Let's start by turning back the clock more than 20 years.
"The Dead Kennedys have been like idols to me since I was in high school. Winston (Smith) was the man who designed the Dead Kennedys' logo and other things, and I was introduced to him when I was in my early twenties, and we got to know each other. At the time, I wasn't making a living doing what I loved like I am now, but I used to go to San Francisco often.
At first I was staying in a cheap hotel, but Winston said, "It's a waste to stay in a hotel, so you can stay as long as you like at my place," and gave me a corner of his studio as a room. He put a TV, a refrigerator, and a microwave in it. I think I ended up staying for about a month.
At the time, this T-shirt was on a torso in the studio. Of course I like Alternative Tentacles Records, but it was so familiar to me in the room that I didn't pay it much attention, thinking it was just a normal thing."
The signature "FOR KENNEDY CHEERS WINSTON SMITH" was likely written by Jello Biafra in the 1980s. The reason it's in such good condition despite being on a torso for over 20 years is likely due to the dry climate of San Francisco. It's possible that this is one of several test prints made at the time for promotional purposes.
An unreleased logo from a US indie label!?
"After that, I started going back and forth (to San Francisco) a lot, and the Alternative Tentacles Records T-shirt was always attached to my torso. Then, once I turned 35, my work got busier and I wasn't able to go for about 10 years. I kept in touch with Winston every now and then, and last year I had the opportunity to go to San Francisco for work for the first time in a while, so I contacted Winston and said, 'I'm coming!'
Since my first visit, Winston has had a sort of vacation home in the mountains, about a two-hour drive from central San Francisco, with no electricity or running water, and he's moved there since COVID-19. I arrived in San Francisco the day before I was to visit Winston's house, and feeling nostalgic as it had been 10 years since I last visited, I wandered around by myself and went to the place where his studio, where he used to let me stay, used to be.
Now it's half a studio and the other half is rented to a friend, and it's turned into something like a record store. I went inside and thought, "Wow, this feels so nostalgic," when Winston, who I had arranged to meet the next day, came into the studio (laughs). We were talking about how "It hasn't changed (except for the bed and TV), it's so nostalgic," and we decided it was time to go for dinner. Then, suddenly, he picked up a T-shirt that had been on the torso from back then and said, "Hey, take this."
You might be wondering, why now, more than 20 years after I first saw it (laughs). I now have more knowledge about vintage clothing than I did back then, and when I asked him if it was okay for me to have such a precious T-shirt, he said, "You should have it."
So I looked at the credits and saw that it was from 1983, which I thought was really old, and then Winston said, "This is the only version of this T-shirt we have." I was like, "???," and looked more closely, and saw that it was different from the triangle eye shape in the current logo. The triangle eye now is upturned, but this one is flat. Apparently the first version was flat, and then (Jello) Biafra said, "Let's make the eye more dramatic and upturned," and then (Winston) upturned it. So the upturned eye version is the one that was released to the public, and apparently this triangular version is the only one. It was a size M, so when I put it on it made a sound like it was going to tear, so I gave up, but if it was an XL I'd just wear it normally (laughs)."
The Unauthorized Version by Marian Kester, first published in 1983, features two versions of the Alternative Tentacles Records logo. If you look closely, you'll notice that not only are the triangular eyes different, but the shape of the cannonball is also different, and next to it is the year 1983 and Winston Smith's copyright. This suggests that the design may have changed during the short period of 1983.
Profile
Kosuke Kawamura
Born in Hiroshima in 1979, he is a graphic designer, artist and creative director of UT. His thoughts on T-shirts are, "They're my favorite part of fashion. Every night before I go to bed, I check Yahoo! Auctions, Mercari, and the band t-shirt shop I always buy from." @ kosukekawamura
