This weekend, from Sept. 29 to 30, A Bathing Ape will host an exhibition commemorating 25 years in the business at Omotesando Hills, Tokyo. It’s hard to believe that one of the most iconic streetwear brands in the world, A Bathing Ape, has been around for over two decades. The exhibition will be called “BAPE XXV,” and brings together many of BAPE’s past collaborators, including Adidas, Barbie (yes, you read that right), Dr. Martens, G-Shock, Mastermind Japan, MCM, Moleskine, Mont Blanc, New Era, Spalding, Swarovski, UGG, and Wilson. There will be no admission fee, and doors will open starting 11 a.m. and close at 9 p.m.
BAPE is most famous for its Ape Head icon with the signature registered trademark “R” symbol. A Bathing Ape’s iconic gorilla head logo can be seen on its tees, face masks, zip-up hoodies, and shorts. Another common BAPE motto is “Ape shall never kill ape,” a reference to the original Planet of the Apes series. BAPE is also well known for its many camouflages. There are several spinoffs of the original brand and logo under the BAPE umbrella: Mr. Bathing Ape, A Bathing Ape Black, BAPE Eyewear, AAPE, and Baby Milo. Aside from the apparel, there are many accessories that are unique to BAPE such as a performance ping-pong set, Ape Head rug, Rimowa suitcase, Modernica chair, wall clock, Pepsi bottles, and, of course, skateboard decks. In addition, BAPE recently expanded to Paris and has multiple locations in the United States (NYC, LA), Europe (London), and Asia (Tokyo, Beijing, Shanghai, Seoul, Taipei, Singapore, Bangkok).
A Bathing Ape can be credited with bringing streetwear into the mainstream, starting in the 2000s. The mid-2000s were definitely the peak of BAPE’s influence, as everyone from The Notorious B.I.G. to Kanye West to Robin Williams proudly sported the brand. But the brand’s history goes back to 1993, when its founder, Nigo, was inspired by a five-hour Planet of the Apes TV marathon and the Japanese idiom “a bathing ape in lukewarm water,” meaning overindulging in luxury, an ironic reference to the moneyed generations of youth who would soon be buying up BAPE around the world. My favorite pieces from BAPE are also from this period. A shortlist would be made up of the BAPE Disney plush toys (2006-2009), gold BAPE Nintendo DS (2008), BAPE Converse (2006), Kanye West “College Dropout” Bapesta (2007), and none other than the legendary Supreme x A Bathing Ape box logo tees that came in 15 different prints and stitched Ape Head sleeve tag (2002). The Supreme x A Bathing Ape tees are almost impossible to find nowadays. Even if you did manage to find one, you would have to pay a hefty price.
Unfortunately, this heavy period of expansion and popularity would not last for long. The new decade brought a mountain of debt and decline, and eventually BAPE was bought out by the Hong Kong fashion conglomerate I.T. Group in 2011. Further down the road, Nigo officially separated from BAPE in 2013 and went on to establish his own label, Human Made, with Pharrell Williams, and became the creative director of UT at Uniqlo. Since its acquisition by I.T., BAPE has secured its place as a streetwear heavyweight at the cost of its rarity and unpredictability. You can easily purchase a shark hoodie (featuring a tiger shark’s head and teeth, reminiscent of warplanes and the phrase “WGM” stitched on chenille varsity patches which stands for World Gone Mad) or a graphic tee through the online store, which did not even exist a decade ago. The original shark hoodie was unlike anything anyone had ever seen before and was copied everywhere. The demand for one hoodie reached levels of hype that rivals the demand for Supreme box logo branded apparel today.
That is not the case in 2018; every season there are shark faces branded on something. The various BAPE motifs will always be iconic, but I always wonder what it would be like today if it retained its roots. I used to be a fan of the brand but realized the quality of the tees was not significantly better than tees you could find at your local mall relative to their prices and seeing the same graphics over and over again made me tired of wearing tees. If anything, I do appreciate the impact A Bathing Ape had on street culture and hip-hop and hope its deep history is not forgotten amidst its resurgent popularity among consumers.
In honor of the anniversary, A Bathing Ape and G-Shock are teaming up on a special watch modeled after the GA-110 silhouette wrapped in BAPE’s signature camo design for approximately $284, which will then release worldwide on Oct. 6. Dedicated fans of the brand will surely, pun intended, go ape. You can also look forward to a full A Bathing Ape and Adidas collection during next year’s Super Bowl (February 2019). The collection will be comprised of shark hoodies, Riddell helmets, football jerseys, arm sleeves, tights, cleats, and notably Ultraboosts in green and black camo colorways, continuing where they left off in 2016 with the very hyped NMD R1s also in green and black camo colorways.
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