The Levi's® Brand Teams Up With Legendary Street Artists to Unveil Limited-Edition Collection of Trucker Jackets

SAN FRANCISCO, April 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Since it was first introduced in 1967, the Levi's® Trucker Jacket has served as an iconic canvas for artists around the world, from the boogie-down Bronx to the favelas of Brazil. Beginning this week, the Levi's® Trucker Jacket will serve as the canvas for a special collaboration celebrating the brand's partnership with the Art in the Streets exhibition at The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (MOCA).  All proceeds from the sale of the jackets will benefit MOCA and the community programs it supports.

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110426/NY89754)

From now through August 6, ten special, limited-edition Levi's® x MOCA Trucker Jackets designed by the most dynamic and influential artists from the graffiti and street art community will be released every two weeks in limited-edition quantities. The Levi's® x MOCA Trucker Jackets feature artwork on the back panel created by artists including Keith Haring, Shepard Fairey, Chaz Bojorquez, Kenny Scharf, Lady Pink and KR.  Each jacket is packaged in a commemorative box bearing a stamp reminiscent of the artist's "tag" and will be available for purchase at The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA (152 North Central Ave).  The Levi's® x MOCA Trucker Jackets retail for $250 and go on sale on the designated day of its release at 11:00 a.m.

"Our Trucker Jacket has been an integral part of the uniform of graffiti and street artists for generations," said Robert Hanson, Levi's® Brand Global President. "This collaborative project is a special way to celebrate the Trucker Jacket's intrinsic tie to the street art community and culture, as well as MOCA's longstanding leadership in the art world."

The collection serves as a retrospective of the history of street art – the jackets will be launched in chronological order of each artist's work, with an homage to the late, great Keith Haring as the final release. Following is the release date schedule:

For the Levi's® x MOCA collaboration, the brand has partnered with the following pioneers in street art and graffiti who are also featured in MOCA's Art in the Streets exhibition:

• Chaz Bojorquez – Growing up, Chaz Bojorquez was exposed to the uses, values and craft of East Los Angeles graffiti lettering styles. By the end of 1969, he had created an iconic tag symbol that represented him and the streets – a stylized skull called "Senor Suerte" (Mr. Luck), which has become a well-known street image of protection from death.

• Crash – Born and raised in South Bronx, John Matos began writing graffiti in 1974.  The aspiring 14-year-old adopted the moniker "Crash" and quickly graduated to painting subway trains.  Turns in the seminal graffiti films Style Wars, and Wild Style in the early 1980s solidified his street fame.  Currently, his work resides in numerous prestigious collections including, MoMA, and The Brooklyn Museum, The Groninger Museum, and the Bronx Council on the Arts.
• Lady Pink – Born in Ecuador and raised in New York City, Lady Pink began writing graffiti in 1979 and soon became well known as the preeminent female artist in the male-dominated subculture of the 1980s. Actively painting subway trains from 1979 to 1985, Pink became immortalized as a cult figure upon the release of Wild Style in 1982, in which she had a starring role.

• Kenny Scharf – Kenny Scharf first gained recognition within the fertile East Village art community of the 1980s, developing a proto-Pop graffiti style in 1979. Infused with a playful energy heavily influenced by vintage cartoons, Scharf's whimsical characters quickly transitioned to his fine art.

• Mr. Andre – André began his painting career on the walls of Paris in 1985 and quickly became one of the city's most active graffiti artists. Sidestepping the route of traditional letter taggers, André distinguished himself with the innovation of his signature character, "Mr. A."

• Krink – Artist KR grew up in 1980s Queens surrounded by graffiti writers, skaters, punks and B-boys, when graffiti was as much a part of the attitude as the decaying urban landscape. In the early 1990s, KR relocated to San Francisco and began creating big, drippy marker tags and experimenting with making his own inks.

• Revok – LA-based artist REVOK has been painting graffiti for over 20 years, making him one of the heavyweights of the genre.  His earliest influences came from skateboarding, hip-hop, punk rock, and cholo-style gang graffiti lettering styles.  REVOK is active internationally - painting graffiti in the streets of the world, from Detroit to Sydney, and exhibiting his fine artwork in high-end galleries.

• Shepard Fairey – Shepard Fairey is the man behind OBEY GIANT, the graphics that have changed the way people see art and the urban landscape. What started with an absurd sticker he created in 1989 while studying at the Rhode Island School of Design has since evolved into a worldwide street art campaign, as well as an acclaimed body of art.

• Neck Face – Mixing sinister humor with heavy doses of grisly imagery, the masked art gremlin known as Neck Face has emerged as one of the most distinct and disruptive artistic voices in street art.  His dismembered corpses, winged demons, and jokey asides manifested in an ongoing series of detailed watercolor paintings and metal masks that have turned him into the unthinkable: a serious artist.

• Keith Haring – Inspired by the graffiti artists whose marks covered New York City subway cars, Keith Haring (1958-90) developed many of his signature iconic images - the radiant baby, the barking dog, and the running figure - drawing over vacant subway advertising panels. Haring died in New York in February 1990 of AIDS. Although his career was brief, his imagery has become a universally recognized visual language of the 20th century.

The Levi's® x MOCA Trucker Jacket project is part of a larger ongoing partnership between the Levi's® brand and MOCA.  Earlier this month, the Levi's® Film Workshop opened its doors within the Art in the Streets exhibition at the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA in downtown Los Angeles.  The story of graffiti and street art, as well as other cultural forms that have emerged from the underground subculture, will come to life in the Levi's® Film Workshop through a series of collaborative film and video projects, robust educational programming and a city-wide screening series.

The Levi's® Film Workshop and Art in the Streets exhibition will run from April 17 through August 8.  Access to the Workshop will be open to the public and free of charge during regular museum hours.  For more information about Levi's® Workshops and the Levi's® Film Workshop, please visit http://workshops.levi.com, http://www.facebook.com/Levis and @levisworkshops.

About The Levi's® Brand

The Levi's® brand epitomizes classic American style and effortless cool. Levi's® jeans were invented by Levi Strauss & Co. in 1873 and have since become one of the most recognized and imitated clothing items in the world – capturing the imagination and loyalty of people for generations. Today, the Levi's® brand portfolio continues to evolve through a relentless pioneering and innovative spirit that is unparalleled in the apparel industry. Our range of leading jeanswear and accessories are available in more than 110 countries, allowing individuals around the world to express their personal style.  For more information about the Levi's® brand, its products and stores, please visit www.levi.com.

SOURCE Levi Strauss & Co.