I have been admiring the work of Nashville-based clothier Imogene+Willie for quite some time, and am excited to say that I recently happened upon a feature of their work in none other than
Garden&Gun magazine last weekend. For those Southerners-at-a-distance like me out there, this magazine may well be a friendly taste of home. For one thing, the title of this glossy alone stopped me in my tracks, and for another, the byline of this month's feature (of which Imogene+Willie are a part) captivatingly reads "21 Architects, Artists, Designers, and Craftsmen Who Are Making Us All Look Good." The thing that I love most about this article, and really this magazine in general, is that it delights in the artists, artisans, designers, and such, who live amongst the places that many of us call home. It doesn't refer to them as some niche group who are too obscured by their artmaking to understand the real world, but rather it considers them a people who help us live more fully and more deeply.
It's valuable to mention that the aforementioned sentiment is worth more than a fleeting glance. What does it mean when we view artists as the sorts who "help the rest of us look good," or perhaps more aptly put,
help the rest of us look more closely? Artists don't always provide a glossy sheen that masks the problems of the world, but can help us all to have a deeper appreciation for the rhythms of the created order. Sometimes an artists' work, justly so, serves to highlight disparities that exist in the world-disparities of black versus white, blood versus beauty, and joy versus tears. At other times, they dig up the raw earth that we've been trodding far too quickly with our busy feet and give us a real, vivid sense of what it means to be a part of something that shakes us to our core. Their stories are not always pretty, but goodness they help us see things more closely.
As artists in their own right, the creators of Imogene+Willie have fashioned a brand that exudes a down home Americana feel without too much fanfare, a whispering comfort of worn-in blue jeans that function just as well creekside as they do out on the town. The creators of this line fashion many of the items that adorn their stores' racks in-shop, developing new washes, fits, and custom details for denim items right in their own little "factory" before turning them out to the public. The store also offers tops, dresses, and rustic boots with a lived-in appeal. All in all, Imogene+Willie offer up a heaping helping of Southern charm that is not overly pretentious but nonetheless capable of whetting the visual appetite. Their clothes are welcoming and call out, "come, live in me." They certainly don't scream "look at me," but instead suggest "I already know who I am." The resulting aesthetic reads fun and flirty but without too many frills, and it's accessible to both males and females alike.
