In the mid 1980s the Western world was riding high, money was growing on trees, and the economic boom was deafening. Corporations were king, and brands like Ford were icons of the capitalist success story. Then came Black Monday of 1987, and by 1990, there was a worldwide recession. It was amid this financial turmoil that graffiti artist Erik Brunetti launched fashion label FUCT, which achieved instant recognisability through its subversion of the Ford logo, at once creating controversy with its crudity and at the same time making a telling political statement.
Brunetti has just released an book, simply titled FUCT, examining the output and impact of the label through its counter-culture philosophy – and providing a timely reminder of how little governments learn from their mistakes. Featuring essays by filmmaker Aaron Rose and journalist Gary Warnett, the book revisits key examples of FUCT’s attacks on the establishment through the lampooning of wholesome Middle American core values and turning pop culture against itself by hijacking mainstream brand identitiy. FUCT is published by Rizzoli New York.
