Blue jeans

Object Lessons is a series of short, beautifully designed books about the hidden lives of ordinary things. Few clothing items are as ubiquitous or as casual as blue jeans. Yet, their simplicity is deceptive. Blue jeans are nothing if not an exercise in opposites. Americans have accepted jeans as a symbol of their culture, but today, they are a global good. Levi Strauss made blue jeans in the 1870s to withstand the hard work of mining, but now, jeans are the epitome of leisure. In the 1950s, celebrities like Marlon Brando transformed the utilitarian clothing of industrial labor into a glamorous statement of youthful rebellion, and now, you can find jeans on the chicest fashion runways. For some, indigo blue might be the color of freedom, but for others, it’s the color of oppression and slavery. Blue Jeans considers the versatility of this iconic garment and investigates what makes denim a universal signifier, ready to fit any context, meaning, and body. Object Lessons is published in partnership with an essay series in The Atlantic.