Yellowman YXM- using motifs from other cultures

[Kiwi Stoker]

I have been seeing the new gear from Yellowman YXM and the graphic Polynesian and Moari motifs being used.

FYI the Maori motifs are the Maori Dragon jersey and the Maori stripe bolero. The Maori are the orginal settlers to New Zealand, mainly arriving by canoe from Polynesian islands. They are quite different however to the Polynesians culture wise and are very proud of their heritage.

Maori elders have been known to get very upset about the wise of Maori designs as they have special meanings. Especially by companies trying to cash in on the Maori name. For example Maori cigarettes.

I find it interesting that this American company has decided to use Maori designs (and Celtic, Polynesian and Indian Henna) and don't seem to have any link to New Zealand at all.

I also am amazed at the Maori dragon- ummm there's no dragons in Maori mythology. There's a monster called the tangiwha and to be honest it looks like they have taken a Celtic dragon and stuck it on the back of the jersey.

I feel that it's OK to use designs but only if used in a manner that doesn't despoil the orginal artwork. Also I feel that sometimes that there needs to be a link from company to country and not just because some graphic designer googled or saw something and went "that looks great" epecially if there's culture tradition or heritage attached. I think the use of 'henna" is probably OK as it doesn't really say "Indian" but these items are called Maori.

How do you feel about this?

BTW I really like the look of the gear- well done for doing something different.

[Crankin]

I have one of the sleeveless jerseys, last year's style. It's very light weight and wicking. The only thing I don't like is that it rides up some; it has the new style flat and light weight elastic on the bottom, which I can usually handle, as opposed to the old fashioned elastic. I also have a sleeveless top that is for the gym, no pockets. It's a little longer than I prefer, but I'm short, so I guess that's expected.
I bought both of these for half price at the end of last season. There's no way I would pay the full price. As far as the designs go, some of them are way too busy for me, almost not attractive.

[SadieKate]

I thought several of them were gorgeous. I wish I could wear prints.

Modern art includes native/aborignal themes by the tribal members themselves - usually increasingly creative and new approaches. I actually think using the designs in an exact copy is far more disrepectful. For instance, Hopi and Navajo sandpainting are made for commercial sale, but never as exact copies because the patterns have religious significance. Folk art, modern art, religious art - they each have their place.

[Biciclista]

a Zuni artist told me once that their designs are sacred and you need permission to use them. She gave me permission to use one design element (sort of a square within a square within a square) but it wasn't something light hearted at all. I would not use another culture's art without the blessing of its people. And I love the stuff.

[SadieKate]

http://www.ymxbyyellowman.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=YMX&Category_Code=ABT

Understanding the value of tattoo art as a vehicle to represent cross-cultural attitudes, Peter Mui pursued the concept of creating wearable tattoo art. For over a decade he has traveled the world, personally knocking on doors of the world's greatest and hard-to-reach tattoo masters to build up an impressive art collection representing the finest in every tattoo style, spanning Japanese Irezumi, Maori Tribal, American Traditional, New School, Biomechanical, and even rare work from a remote Buddhist monk in Thailand. These mastepieces are not only significant in their own right, but they also carry with them volumes of symbolic elements that are rich with cultural history.

[GLC1968]

Personally, I LOVE their designs. And I love that they have taken inspiration from beautiful artwork (apparently tattoo artwork) from all over the world. It brings a gorgeous freshness to athletic wear. I also like that they appear to use both vibrant and muted colors.

I have one of their tanks that I got on sale last year. The fabric is incredible. By far, the coolest (temperature-wise) item I own. I wore it a lot for indoor cycling classes where I always, always overheat and this tank helped a lot. I wish I could afford more pieces because they are excellent for someone like me who runs very 'hot' when exercising.

Crankin - mine was long on me too and I have a long torso, but I liked it that way.

[TsPoet]

I grew up in Santa Fe. My parents owned an art gallery. I worked a lot with Indian Artists, mostly Navajo. The artists selling lower end wares (ie sitting under the portico) would tell the tourists that it was sacred. The upper end artists selling their wares for $1000+ would say that was not really the case. It's art. They are making money off of it, they are sharing it.

But... Joe Ben, a fabulous sand painter who sold his sand paintings for thousands of dollars was once doing a "real" sand painting demonstration - the tourists huddled around taking photos and it was twilight. Joe was very very upset - a sand painting of the type he made MUST be destroyed before sunset and he couldn't get to it. My father (a man with no empathy whatsoever) managed to force his way to the front of the crowd and kick the painting. Joe was forever in his dept. To this day, I'm amazed that my father bothered, Joe must've been upset enough to break through my father's lack of noticing.
Anyway - they are two different things. Copying art from other culters that's out there and that you can buy from them is no different, IMHO, than copying Van Gogh or any other art.

[Crankin]

I really can't comment on the cultural aspects; the best thing about these products is the material. Like GLC, I get extremely overheated during indoor classes and when I run outside. Not so much for cycling.
I am not sure what exactly turns me off about some of the designs. A couple of them, it's definitely the color combinations and for some, I hate to say it, the designs just look ugly to me.

[Wahine]

It's an interesting issue. I agree that any cultural, sacred image, should be treated with respect. Regardless of a person's personal beliefs (but that's a whole other topic).

But it's sort of a double edged sword of the global village, isn't it? Someone sees something that they identify with and they want to emabrace it and make it part of who they are, so they adapt and modify it into something uniquely theirs but inspired by X. That's actually a pretty pure motivation in some ways.

Then there are companies that use these images in their designs with no religious significance at all but simply for the visual appeal. The consumer sees it, something clicks and they buy. Maybe it never goes farther than that. But maybe they think, "Wow, this is really cool" and choose to learn more about where that image came from. All of a sudden you have a person in the USA who becomes inspired by and aware of a different culture. Probably also a good thing.

But in the process the imagery has been watered down. It's no longer meaningful. And a culture may become offended.

It reminds me of a chinese proverb, "Good luck, bad luck, who knows" (http://www.naute.com/inspiration/luck.phtml)

I certainly don't have the answer.

But I am pretty certain that it can't be stopped. In the current world of instant sharing of images and ideas, it's inevitable that people will run with ideas and inspirations driven by many different undercurrents of intention and I don't think it can be controlled.