At Grover Rad, fashion gets political through the comic art of Aline Kominsky-Crumb and Sophie Crumb
Grover Rad denim plaid coatPhoto: Lisette Emma / Courtesy of Grover Rad
Rad comes to fashion from the worlds of tech and interior design. After cofounding two companies , she went into private practice, but became restless. “There’s just something about interior design that’s very safe…I love the risks that can be taken in the fashion space, and [that’s] what drew me in,” she said on a Zoom call.
Artist collaborations in fashion are nothing new, but few touch on such serious subjects as unflinchingly autobiographical as the work the Crumbs created for Grover Rad. “It was an interesting and brave idea,” said Aline on a call from France. “We’re really moved by this subject and that’s why we agreed to do it…because we really wanted to say something about it.” Mother and daughter wrote about their own abortions and the vastly different experiences they had.
The Crumbs’ comic isn’t the only graphic in the collection. There are body-printed trompe l’oeil pieces that make the wearer look naked, and there’s also asub-theme, featuring prints and a jacket embroidered with a quote from the book. The use of text is interesting in the sense that it symbolically gives women back the authority to control the narratives around the freedom of their bodies. Rad’s intent is that the designs be conversation starters.