Thrown-away Faded Icon Cap:
Embroidered Design by Nukeme

Thrown-away Faded Icon Cap: Embroidered Design by Nukeme

"The ThrowAway Faded Icon Cap is inspired by a faded, worn-out, or old cap that has been discarded.

For some reason, I'm more drawn to hats that have been loved and used for many years than to brand new caps. Even in thrift shops, I'm drawn to hats that make me wonder if there's a reason they've been used so much. Even a hat with a sports team logo on it that looks so loved even as it fades in the sun has a unique charm to it .

It is based on a worn-out cap with a hole in it that I remembered from researching around 30,000 caps for a job I once did.

Not only does it have a texture that looks like it has faded from its original color, but the tip of the brim has a unique distressed look as if the fabric has been rolled up.

This idea is related to memories of the American South.
When I traveled there, I often came across people wearing sun-bleached, tattered caps. Perhaps the more tattered something is, the cooler it looks, because when I went to a local shop for hunters, they sold caps that had been purposely worn out, and I remember seeing a woman wearing a distressed tree camo cap.

Symbols of Identity: Reflections on Caps

The book "CAP/Yasushi Fujimoto," published in 2009, contains the author's memories along with various caps.
As I read the text while looking at faded and homemade items, I become aware of the symbolism of the caps.
A symbol as "a person wearing a hat" and a symbol as "a logo that expresses affiliation or ideology."

CAP To all CAP staff and about me wearing a cap. / Yasushi Fujimoto

Symbolic Exchange and Death / Jean Baudrillard

Speaking of symbols, there is Jean Baudrillard's book Symbolic Exchange and Death.
"Symbolic exchange" refers to the process in which goods and actions are exchanged based on their symbolic value (i.e., symbols) or social meaning (also symbols) rather than their economic value.

In other words, the cap's role is not just to protect the head, but what's important is what symbols are depicted on it.
This may be true of everything we wear in modern times. The following sentence in the book is also interesting.
The part that says, "In modern consumer society, death tends to be considered taboo and hidden."

The ThrowAway Faded Icon Cap is kind of close to death.
One is the aforementioned distressing process, which intentionally speeds up time, thus representing the act of approaching death. The other is glitch embroidery by artist Nukeme.

Threading the Digital World

Glitch embroidery artist Nukeme

Glitch embroidery is a group of works that involves rewriting embroidery data for computerized sewing machines, causing glitches (malfunctions) directly in the movement of the needle.
Nukeme has been creating works using this technique since around 2011, and his works are expressions with a social context that arose as the internet and computers became more prevalent in society. The way the logo disintegrates evokes a sense of approaching death.

About more Nukeme

https://www.instagram.com/nukemenukeme

The movement of the needle caused by the glitch cannot be fully controlled, resulting in unexpected changes, which adds to the fun of accidental movement.

Eerie, somewhat surreal, and cute. His multi-layered approach using symbols is a unique artistic technique. The ThrowAway Faded Icon Cap features his artwork.
We've talked about difficult topics like "death" and "symbols," but please try wearing it casually without worrying too much about it.