Levi’s® Vintage Clothing digs deep into the Levi’s® Archives to re-produce iconic garments from bygone eras. For Spring 2012, Levi’s® Vintage Clothing™ pays tribute to the golden era of the American Hot Rod, and the sharply dressed car owners and spectators who sported Levi’s®. Back then, style was almost as important as speed and the look was as considered as the cars themselves. Levi’s® Jeans and Sportswear were the staples. But just like the souped-up Model T, these iconic garments were endlessly accessorized and customized.

Many artists who started out airbrushing cars in the 1950s became famous for applying the same skill to sweatshirts and t-shirts. Legends like Von Dutch, Ed ‘Big Daddy’ Roth, Newt, Stanley Mouse and later Von Franco were renowned for the weird and wonderful ‘Monster’ artworks that they painted and sold at car shows around the United States. Their distinct aesthetic, although massively popular with Hot Rod enthusi-asts and essential to the visual culture of the sport, has since had a wide-ranging influence on graphic design and fashion, most notably setting the tone for t-shirt art in the surf, skate and punk movements.

To celebrate this unique aspect of Hot Rod culture and its legacy, Levi’s® Vintage Clothing™ has collaborated with the legendary Von Franco to create a limited series of 35 one-of-a-kind Kustom Monster sweatshirts. Each Levi’s® Vintage Clothing™ 1950s Crew Sweatshirt has been individually hand airbrushed by the master himself and doc-umented in detail here in this book.

KUSTOM MONSTER SHIRTSAirbrushed by Von Franco for

Levi’s® Vintage Clothing™

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The following pages are excerpted fromVon Franco’s self published book from 2000

I Was A Teenage Monster Shirt Painter

© 2013 Levi Strauss & Co.

Von Franco is a certified trademark, registered with the United States patent office.

www.levisvintageclothing.com