David Wojnarowicz had a lot to say, paint, write, perform and photograph. Such as, “I want to throw up because we’re supposed to quietly and politely make house in this killing machine called America and pay taxes to support our own slow murder and I’m amazed we’re not running amok in the streets, and that we can still be capable of gestures of loving after lifetimes of all this,” he wrote in Close to the Knives: A Memoir of Disintegration in 1991. True that! The legendary American AIDS activist’s work has been chosen by Jonathan Anderson to be printed onto Loewe cotton crew neck t-shirts, as part of creating awareness around the Visual AIDS Foundation (committed to raising awareness through visual art exhibitions and publications) and to also honour Wojnarowicz’s legacy. After Wojnarowicz was diagnosed with AIDS, he used his art to challenge how people reacted to the AIDS epidemic of the ‘80s, from his base in Manhattan’s East Village. In doing so, he became a notoriously hard hitting, speaking-the-truth figure, garnering negative publicity and having his work removed from galleries for their extremities. We love a legend who challenges society. The four artworks Jonathan has chosen (below) will appear on the t-shirts, of which total sales proceeds will go to the Visual AIDS Foundation. The t-shirts also coincide with the Loewe Foundation’s exhibition of Wojnarowicz’s works that will be displayed at Loewe’s Gran Via Madrid store from June through late August. There’s nothing more ideal than a purchase that does good and looks good.
The t-shirts are available at Dover Street Market and Loewe.com as of today.
